Phoenix Rose
by TheKeybladeForger
Summary: There was nothing that could have prepared me for life in another world. It's one thing to read about them in stories, but to actually end up trapped in one is something entirely different. I never could have imagined that my past was tied to this world or that the people I would meet would become so dear to me. And that for the first time in my life, I feel like I truly belong...
1. A Sea of Stars

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note:** First of all, I'd like to thank ' _NinjaSphynxKitten'_ for being my beta-reader for this new story. And I hope you all look forward to a story unlike any that's been told before in the Kyo Kara Maoh universe. At least, I think so anyway. As for the timeline, this takes place immediately after Season 3.

 **Note(12/14/2017):** Wow it's been awhile since I've worked on anything KKM related! Gonna have to get used to writing in first person again too. Still, I might as well update a few things here while I'm re-reading the story because it's so different from the one I've been working on recently. I won't change too much here story-wise, mostly just fix some typos and tweak a few things here or there so it looks better. The rest I'm just reviewing so I can write a new chapter for this story.

* * *

Chapter 1: A Sea of Stars

* * *

(Phoenix Rose by TheKeybladeForger)

 _Can you see the wings unfurling_

 _As the sky begins to catch fire?_

 _Singing a melancholy song_

 _Of days gone by, singing all alone._

 _Because there can only be one._

 _There can only be one._

 _In the red of the dawn,_

 _Amidst a path of withered roses_

 _Can you hear her dulcet voice_

 _Deep in the shadow of a forest once set ablaze?_

 _Singing a melancholy song_

 _Of days gone by, singing all alone._

 _Because there can only be one._

 _There can only be one._

 _In death, she is reborn,_

 _Consumed by the flames of her birth._

 _The first and last of her kind._

 _Singing a melancholy song_

 _Of days gone by, singing all alone._

 _Because there can only be one._

 _There can only be one._

 _So when you hear her melancholy song_

 _Of days gone by, singing for you._

 _Remember there is life again after death,_

 _Even for you, because you too are a Phoenix._

 _And there can only be one._

 _There can only be one…_

* * *

~ ? POV~

It was supposed to be a day like any other. But there I was, desperately slamming my fists against the glass of the driver's seat window of my car as it sank further down into the murky darkness. Knowing that the further down I sank, the harder it would be for me to swim back up to the surface. The water was almost to my waist now. And any second I knew that the windshield would give way, letting the water in all at once...

There had to be something I could do to escape! First though, I had to try and calm down enough to think about how to get out of this more realistically. That's when it hit me, if I couldn't break it with my bare hands, maybe I should try kicking it? After taking a deep breath I leaned back in my seat -which was already half submerged- and began kicking the window with all my might.

Before long, cracks started to form just as my lungs began to burn and with one final effort the glass shattered. The only downside was that now my last pocket of air was gone, so if I didn't make it to the surface soon, I'd drown. And there was no way after all of this that I was going to let that happen. Not when there was a chance now that I might just make it out this alive.

I had only just reached the other side of the window when to my surprise I saw the faint outline of someone swimming towards me. It was so dark though since the headlights had gone out that I couldn't tell what they looked like. I felt a strong hand grab my arm and the two of us started swimming upwards. And when our heads broke the water's surface it was one of those moments that seemed to last forever, yet was actually all over in an instant...

The water wasn't cold exactly, but my whole body was shaking like a leaf by the time we were back on solid ground. It wasn't long before I realized we weren't on _'solid'_ land though. I felt the surface beneath me swaying slightly, and once I was able to get all the water out of my ears I heard the sound of ocean waves rather than the river rapids I was expecting. And yeah, believe or not there's a difference between the two sounds. It looked like I was on a boat of some kind. Though obviously I hadn't noticed at first because the only thing on my mind was getting to safety at the time as I let my mysterious rescuer guide me up the rope ladder.

I was still feeling pretty disoriented from the whole ordeal by the time we made it to the top and the only thing I could make out in the near darkness were the outlines of a group of people standing around me as I sagged to the floor trying to catch my breath. They were speaking in hurried voices I could barely understand because of this annoying ringing in my ears that made my head throb uncomfortably. But at least that was one thing I could rationally explain. My ears were probably ringing because I had a large bruise on my forehead from when my head slammed into the steering-wheel during the accident. It was entirely possible that I had a slight concussion from that that was making me so dizzy. I seriously hoped not though.

Either way, in spite of making it out of the car alive, I felt completely alone and scared out of my mind. What happened on the bridge should have been impossible. A group of men dressed in black robes suddenly appeared out of thin air right in front of me in a beam of light and I had to swerve to the side of the road to avoid hitting them. That's when I dove headfirst over the bridge right into the river. As soon as I hit the water, I panicked and felt a sharp ache in my chest that made my heart flutter dangerously fast. And for a moment I could have sworn that I was glowing when the car bobbed to the surface again for just a split second before dropping back down again into the depths.

I jerked in surprise when someone knelt down in front of me, turning only to instruct the others to step back and give me some space. In the dim light I could see that he had long golden hair that rippled over his thin shoulders, wore a pair of lavender tinted shades, and dressed in what almost looked like white robes with a matching fur rimmed cloak which he quickly removed and draped over my shoulders as he elegantly helped me to my feet.

I was speechless. This was like something out of a dream or the beginning of the _'heroes' journey'_ that I've seen told in so many ways in almost all of my favorite books. Fantastic stories about how someone completely ordinary finds themselves spirited away from the life they've always known and forced to accept a reality greater than their own...

I just never thought I'd be living out that kind of story myself.

* * *

Once we were inside, I was brought to one of the cabins and given a proper blanket by the older man who'd rescued me from the car. He was a tall man with dark amethyst eyes and jade green hair drawn back in a long ponytail. His expression was straight forward and serious but he was very gentle with me despite his gruff appearance. And again, judging from how weird everyone looked, I _'wasn't in Kansas anymore...'_

That's when things got complicated.

For some reason, my ears were still ringing and I felt extremely lightheaded. So as I sat there in a daze, the boy with the long blonde hair tried to talk to me. I looked up when I heard his voice, but I couldn't understand him very well and could only make out every other word. But how could I explain to him that I didn't understand…?

Hoping that some gestures -even to foreigners- were universal I shook my head and pointed to one of my ears. "I can't understand anything you're saying," I tried to explain, wincing when the ringing in my ears became even louder.

My head felt like it was about to split open and I doubled over in pain. Not to mention that I began feeling nauseous too because the ship was moving so much. Usually I wasn't prone to motion sickness but after the way I'd been jerked around in my seat when the car crashed, my body was still feeling echoes of that initial shock. All things considering I was in pretty good shape and handling this pretty well. For now at least.

"Your Highness, it would appear that this girl is a cast away from a distant country. I don't think she can understand us," the taller man said to his companion as I struggled to keep myself from throwing up.

Glancing back at him from the corner of his eye, the boy nodded. "Yes, I agree. But first things first. Have someone bring me whatever spare clothes they can find and some fresh drinking water." Bowing, the man replied curtly then promptly left the room.

Despite how well I was holding myself together I was at a loss and didn't know what to do or what to think about all this. I had so many questions spinning around in my head like: where did those men in the robes come from? What did they want? Did they appear on the bridge by coincidence or was there something in my hometown they were after. How did I even get here? Where was _'here?'_ And how the heck was I supposed to get back home?


	2. Dancing Firelight

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **IMPORTANT NOTE:** In case anyone reading this happens to be an orphan or a foster child, this story is in no way meant to offend anyone. Heck one of my best friends is adopted and my mom has a friend with five adopted children. So please, this story is just that, a story. Therefore the following story elements are not necessarily what I think the foster system is really like and I'm using certain scenarios solely for drama purposes in this story. And if you guys have seen KKM then you know that two of the main characters are actually adopted themselves; Gretta and Geisila. Anyway, I wanted to let you guys know about this ahead of time so that you're emotionally prepared.

 **Note (12/14/2017):** Since I've been doing this for my recent stories after one of my reviewers here suggested that the lyrics were taking up too much space _(thanks for that btw, it's been a great help!,)_ I decided to simplify the music inspiration info so you can look up the songs yourselves to feel the vibe I was going for. The only exception for keeping in the lyrics is going to be when I insert the songs/poems that are original works of mine such as the one from the previous chapter.

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Chapter 2: Dancing Firelight

 _(Chapter inspired by Safe & Sound by Taylor Swift "feat. The Civil Wars")_

* * *

 _Flashback: Sara's POV_

 _When Berias finally emerged from the water I was surprised when it wasn't Yuri or one of his companions accompanying him but instead a young girl. I expected our journey back to Small Shimaron from Seisakoku to be a dull and uneventful trip until we saw a bright light burst from beneath the waves…_

 _The moment I saw the light from my bedchamber I immediately thought of Yuri and I allowed myself a small smile at the thought. Berias told me a few hours after we left Seisakoku's shores that he had sensed the distinct presence of Yuri's magic passing through the air upon it returning to him soon after the Divine Sword was restored. I was relieved to hear that. After all, I'd hurt Yuri very deeply and if it wasn't for me he never would have lost his powers in the first place, and quite possibly his life because of my recklessness..._

 _Over the last few days that's the only thing that was on my mind. My debt to him was nowhere near paid. Somehow I needed to repay Yuri not only for saving my mother, but for not giving up on me when I lost myself to despair when I thought that yet again I'd been rejected._

" _Your Highness," Berias called from the floor below where I stood. "Did you see that light?"_

 _I nodded and gestured towards where I last saw it before the light began to dim. "Yes. Now tell the captain to turn the ship around, we need to find out what it is. Or rather_ 'who' _it is."_

" _Then you sensed it too?" Berias observed, following my gaze. "Whatever that light is, I can feel an unusual power coming from that direction. It's so strong that I can sense it even from this distance. We should hurry before the light fades and we lose sight of it."_

 _After that he went to the captain and the ship began to turn towards the now flickering light. I made sure to keep the light in sight in case it went out before we could reach it. There was almost no moonlight tonight and the torchlight could only reach so far. If only I had taken a warship instead since all of those are automatically equipped with a searchlight which would have made the search much easier._

 _By the time the ship reached the source of the light I realized that it wasn't the light itself that we were sensing at all. There was someone in the water, trapped inside of something we couldn't quite make out aside from the two shafts of light blinking through the darkness._

 _Realizing this, Berias removed his belt so his swords wouldn't weigh him down and dove into the water. There was no time to lose. In the meantime I waited on deck with several of my soldiers at the ready in case whoever it was needed medical attention. What I didn't expect was that the person Berias rescued would be someone with such beautiful eyes._

 _The girl was the first one to come up the ladder and she almost immediately collapsed to the floor, coughing and spitting up salt water as she shivered slightly. My soldiers were just following orders when they approached her and they were also surprised to see some strange girl instead of who we were expecting._

" _A girl? What's a little girl like her doing all the way out here at sea?"_

" _I haven't a clue but there's something strange about her. I don't like it. Maybe she's an esoteric user sent here to spy on us for King Ranjeel! Shouldn't we lock her up just to be safe?"_

" _No. His Majesty told us to assist whomever we rescued and we must respect his orders. Now stand aside and let-"_

" _Enough," I interrupted, noticing how distressed the girl seemed to be and they stepped aside to let me past. "You're frightening the poor girl. Here."_

 _Setting aside my lamp for a moment I removed my overcoat as a gesture of kindness, hoping that it would help to reassure her. That's when she looked up at me, clearly confused, but there was something about her eyes that seemed…familiar somehow. Her eyes were a rich golden shade of amber that seemed to catch the light from my lantern and flicker with an inner strength as if they too were on fire; and although it was wet, I could see that her long hair was a dark reddish brown that framed her gently curved cheekbones._

 _Speaking of fire, I quickly recomposed myself and escorted her inside so that we could dry her off before she caught a cold. Berias of course followed close behind us while I silently gestured for the rest of them to stay behind because I didn't want the poor girl to feel anymore overwhelmed. She was shaking enough as it was. And I highly doubted it was just because she was feeling a chill…_

* * *

Present: ? POV

My awkward method of communication seemed to have worked at least to some extent. Although there were still some things that took a little more time to explain to them; like my name for instance. When I tried to tell them my name I pointed to myself and slowly repeated my name until it looked like they understood. Feeling really stupid the whole time I might add and blushing furiously…

"Ash Falcer," the blonde boy repeated, handing me a glass of water. "What an unusual name."

Accepting the glass with an unsure smile, I made sure to drink it slowly despite how raw my throat felt so I wouldn't choke on it. This whole situation was a lot to process and the excessive pounding in my head wasn't exactly helping. For one thing, how could I have ended up in the middle of the ocean? My car crashed into the river and that was nowhere near any coastlines, at least not where I was crossing. I would have drowned long before the car floated that far downstream if it didn't just sink like a rock before getting that far. And this was a big ship too from what I could tell so there's no way it would be able to sail on something as small as a river.

Honestly, if this was all a dream, it was one of the most vivid dreams I've ever experienced. Seeing as this was unfortunately very real it was something I would just have to accept at some point. But at the time I was too emotionally and physically exhausted to think about it. I was still getting over the fact that I wasn't dead right now.

Deep in my heart, like any rational person would have I didn't want to accept that this was happening to me. My life was confusing enough right now as it was. I didn't need all this. I really didn't. And so despite my best efforts not to cry I felt the all-too familiar sensation of tears filling my eyes. Whenever they spilled over my cheeks, I angrily wiped them away, not wanting to look like I was too weak to get through this without breaking down. Because if there was one thing I hated more than anything else, it was people looking at me with pity or contempt…

For the last seventeen years I've lived in about ten different homes. And no it wasn't because of a parent's job, family troubles, or anything like that. Well ok some of it had to do with family but not _'my'_ family; because I didn't have one. When I was just a baby they found me crying in the arms of a dying man with nothing but the bloodied clothes on his back and not a dollar to his name.

The last thing he said before taking his final breath was my name: Ashlynn. He wasn't my father though. The DNA tests proved that much about him at least. But no one knew where he came from or who he was, only that he died saving my life. Other then that, there were no records of him at all. As if he never existed.

Since then for one reason or another none of the families I stayed with seemed to work out. Two of them had children of their own who either ignored me or outright rejected me; one of the families I was staying with realized that they weren't equipped to raise a foster child and sent me back to the orphanage; four of them almost adopted me, but something always seemed to come up that made the adoption fall through; the previous two foster families were wonderful, however, there was only so much of the _'real world'_ that they could protect me from so when the bullying at school came to a point where I was hospitalized because of extreme stress I was transferred to a new home in a smaller town in hopes that it would help me recover some of my confidence.

There was just one problem: I just turned seventeen a month before the transfer. Once I turned eighteen the law would consider me a legal adult which would automatically kick me out of the foster-care system. And the likelihood of getting adopted as a teenager were slim to none anyway. That being said before any of this new craziness happened there were a lot of things on my mind. Things about my future, my goals, my dreams, my fears, and my hopes moving forward in life…

And this wasn't what I had in mind at all.


	3. The Letter

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note (12/14/2017):** I realized after I started re-reading this that I forgot to change the POV a few times. Hopefully this will fix it but as a general rule, most of this is from Ash's POV and if I don't change it between line divisions then it's usually the same character commenting unless I forgot to switch back to Ash.

* * *

Chapter 3: The Letter

* * *

~Ash's POV~

I must have cried myself to sleep because when I woke up later on I was alone again safely tucked away in bed with a fresh bandage around my head and my other injuries. The last thing I remember was trying and failing at fending off tears and the soothing feeling of someone gently rubbing my back when I couldn't stop. Because I was finally experiencing my long-delayed emotional breakdown. I was too busy covering my eyes with the palms of my hands earlier to see who was comforting me. I had a strong feeling it was the younger boy with long blonde hair lavender-tinted shades though.

My body ached all over, but at least the ringing in my ears wasn't as bad as before. It had dulled to something more like an irritating hum. Now that I'd gotten the poor-pitiful-me feelings out of my system too I could try to make sense of what in the world was going on…

For one thing there was no doubt in my mind anymore that this wasn't a dream. As much as I hated to admit it. Judging by their odd choices in clothing and the fact that there were grown men walking around wearing actual swords on their belts instead of guns, I was either somewhere in the past, a country that still used swords in their daily lives, or possibly in another world entirely. And honestly the third one seemed more likely to me given the fact that several men dressed like Gregorian monks appeared in a flash of light in front of me and my main rescuer had dark green hair.

Now the only questions left were how and why I was here.

One thing I knew for sure was that it definitely had something to do with the robed jerks who caused the accident. Well, at least I'm calling them _'jerks'_ because I'm mad about what happened. On purpose or not, I ended up driving off the bridge because I was trying to avoid them. Although it's entirely possible that they aren't the ones who actually sent me hereto this strange place. Either way I was in no position to figure everything out right away so the best thing I could do was try to get some rest since I wasn't in any immediate danger. Which due to my recent experience has shown me could change at any moment...

Resting one arm over my forehead, I stared blankly up at the ceiling for a while in hopes that I would bore myself to sleep. When that didn't work I carefully propped myself up in bed and looked around the cabin. It was a lot nicer than I expected now that I'd taken the time to actually take it all in. Almost like the sort of rooms you'd find on a luxury cruiser.

The covers on my bed were a pale salmon color while the surrounding walls were a rich walnut with round windows and light blue curtains. Next to me sat a desk made of the same polished wood. There was a table too in the opposite corner of the room covered with a simple white table cloth with a spread of fresh bread and assorted fruits.

After a while I couldn't stand the silence anymore and got out of bed thinking that maybe some fresh air might do me some good. My clothes were folded neatly on the chair beside me, freshly washed and looking no worse for wear. I winced a little when my shirt brushed against the bandages on my arms but other than that I managed to slip back into the outfit I'd worn the day before.

It wasn't anything fancy, just a pair of tan capris with a pale green shirt decorated with a floral pattern in the bottom right corner. Once I was dressed in my normal cloths again I ate a slice of the bread before I made my way outside to the upper deck. I stumbled a few times but eventually made it outside to where I was immediately greeted by the unfamiliar scent of salty sea air and the shrill cry of gulls flying overhead.

 _So much for 'fresh air,'_ I thought to myself with a slight chuckle as I closed the doors behind me.

The crew members and soldiers didn't pay me much mind while I explored the deck of the ship. It wasn't as if I was expecting to find anything interesting but I had to do something to get my mind off of things for a little while. Besides, with the language barrier between us there wasn't anyone I could really talk to anyway so exploring was the best distraction I could come up with.

It didn't take very long before I explored every inch of the ship's deck, including the location of the life boats just in case I had to make a quick getaway. Then I decided it was about time that I went back to my room. But I nearly jumped out of my skin though when I felt someone grab my shoulder and whirled around, which I instantly regretted doing.

The sudden sense of vertigo made my vision start to swim and I collapsed to the floor with a startled gasp. Everything was spinning in front of me. And all I could do was sit there in a daze until the dizziness finally passed. Then, a familiar gloved hand was offered to me.

I took it gratefully without meeting his gaze before letting out a huge sigh, "I guess wandering around when I'm still recovering wasn't the best idea huh?"

He didn't reply, which I could only assume was because we couldn't understand each other and promptly escorted me back to my room. Once we got there though I was surprised to see the other boy there sitting on the edge of my bed. Looking over at me with a very serious gaze when we entered the room. For some reason the intensity of his gaze unnerved me and I involuntarily took a step back only to have my shoulders grabbed from behind in order for them to steer me over to the bed as well.

Forgetting for a moment that they didn't understand English, I asked the boy beside me, "Hey, I'm sorry for leaving my room like that without permission but why are you-" my words were cut short when he unexpectedly took both of hands into his, sending a chill up my spine when I felt the same warm sensation rush through me that I felt when I first crashed into the river. But why was I suddenly feeling the same sensation coming from him too?

Turning away from me to confirm something with his companion, he asked, "Berias, are you certain that the power we sensed last night came from this girl?"

"Yes. When I was attending to her wounds I sensed it almost immediately." After sparing me another sideways glance, the older man continued, "My guess is that she must have used her power unconsciously to save herself from danger or possibly from someone who was after her. Given how close we are to the Great Demon Kingdom I can only assume she was trying to go there but fell short of her original destination..."

"Then how do you explain the fact that she can't speak our language? Surely if this girl was trying to go there she would already know it. Unless-" standing up from the bed and walking over to the other man, the boy whispered in his ear, "-it's possible that she is an acquaintance of Yuri's from that unknown country where he was born in which case we should contact them just to be sure."

I had no idea what was going on, but I felt a nervous knot start to form in the pit of my stomach when the two of them looked at me in unison. Up until that point I'd been able to hide my uncertainty behind the shock of everything that happened. But now I had to face the reality that these people were still strangers and I wasn't so sure anymore if I was safe with them.

* * *

The Great Demon Kingdom: Conrad's POV

 _Dear Yuri,_

 _I know it has only been a short time since we last saw one another but I am in need of your assistance. On a side note however I sincerely hope that you and your subjects are doing well. Berias has informed me that he sensed your powers return which is a great relief to know since that can only mean your health has improved since our last mishap. As to the reason I am sending you this letter, during the journey back to Small Shimaron we had a very unusual encounter with a mysterious girl that we rescued from the middle of the ocean. Berias says that she shows signs of possessing strong magical powers that we believe she might have used to escape from an unknown threat._

 _Her name is Ash Falcer, from what we can gather. Apart from that though I'm afraid we don't know anything else about her because she doesn't appear to be able to understand our language. This is likely either because of the head injury she sustained during the incident that brought her here or because of other strenuous circumstances. That being said I would humbly like to request a meeting with you to confirm whether or not she is a member of the Demon Tribe before we return home as it might raise unwanted questions from Big Shimaron should she prove to be so._

 _I'll await your reply before continuing our journey home._

 _Signed,_

 _Saralegui_

"He certainly doesn't waste any time making an excuse to see His Highness again does he?" Gwendal frowned when he finished reading off the letter we had just received from King Saralegui.

"No he doesn't," I agreed with a troubled nod, reading the letter over again one more time myself before handing it back to my older brother. "What do you make of this Gwendal?"

After a moment of silence he sighed. "Given the circumstances of our last meeting with King Saralegui I doubt that even he would make such a request right now if it wasn't important. I just hope Saralegui won't be too disappointed when he finds out that Yuri isn't back yet."

Smiling, I added, "Well I suppose we're all a little disappointed that we couldn't keep Yuri here indefinitely, especially Wolfram. He's been pouting all week since he was greatly looking forward to having Yuri around 24-7 only to have him get his powers back and run off back to Earth. I for one am glad that he was able to though. I remember how sad Yuri was the first time he thought he would never be able to see his family again when he first became the Demon King and I didn't want him to have to live with the knowledge of never seeing his family again. But I'm getting off topic here," becoming serious again, I asked Gwendal how we should formally reply to Saralegui's request.

Folding the letter closed, Gwendal looked me in the eye and finally responded, "Usually I would say that this has nothing to do with us but I'm sure that His Majesty would give me an ear full if I didn't at least try to be sympathetic. So at the very least we'll take it into consideration. But first I would like to consult Ulrike to see if she sensed anyone using transportation magic within the last few days. After all, if this _'Ash Falcer'_ has THAT much magic then I want to make sure that power is legitimate and there wasn't someone else involved that simply transported the wrong person. Once I confirm it with Ulrike we'll send him a reply. Until then I'd appreciate it if you kept this between us alright?"

"Alright."

* * *

Sara's Ship: Ash's POV

As the hours slowly passed my restlessness only grew worse until I felt like screaming at the top of my lungs in frustration. I'd finally gotten over the confusion of ending up in the middle of the ocean but now I had bigger things to worry about! It didn't even occur to me until after I was confined to my room that my snooping around the ship would make me look suspicious to these people. The thought hadn't even crossed my mind to just stay put and wait things out until we got to dry land where it'd be easier to slip away. That was stupid of me.

I was one of those people who liked to have a plan in mind for the worse-case scenario rather than be caught unprepared when and if something did happen. This was a habit I developed sometime around the age of eight because of how many times my adoptions fell through. I used to always keep a backpack underneath my bed with spare cloths, money, food, and a flashlight. Eventually I grew out of the habit of keeping a backpack since I had no intention of running away from my problems. Although the mindset of always planning ahead never left me though.

"Assume nothing, expect anything," I muttered to myself with a hallow laugh as I lay on my side, staring out one of the round windows into the deep blue of a midnight sky.

Despite the sky being dusted with billions of glittering stars the sky felt…cold. Maybe it was because it wasn't my sky. I felt trapped, not just because the door to my room was locked, but because there was nothing here to tie me to the only world I've ever known. Was it my home anymore though? Or was there something here that I was destined to find or to discover about myself? Only time would tell...


	4. Hopeful

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

* * *

Chapter 4: Hopeful

* * *

The Great Demon Kingdom: Ash's POV

I can't even begin to describe how relieved I felt to be back on solid ground again. After my little excursion on deck, being cooped up in my room for the rest of the trip was giving me serious cabin fever. My relief was short-lived though when I was ushered forward by the soldiers stationed behind me. Just a small reminder that I was no longer considered their _'guest_.'

With a resigned sigh I followed behind Sara and Berias as we made our way off the ship, making sure to keep a close eye on my surroundings. I noticed a few things right away that helped paint a fuller picture of what this place was like as a whole. First of all the clothes that most people were wearing looked like a distinctive blend of early 18th to late 19th century styles while the buildings on the other hand had more of a medieval appearance...

Translation, there was absolutely nothing ' _modern'_ about this place.

Heck, once we left the docks there was even a real horse-driven carriage waiting for us! That's when I actually started to feel kind of excited about being somewhere a little more old fashion than I was used to. My foster dad at the moment, David, was a professional horse breeder so I've ridden horses before but never rode around in something like this. He told me that every Christmas they used to rent a sleigh and take the local neighborhood kids out caroling, but when it got too expensive to do every year they had to give up the tradition. I can still remember how disappointed I was that I'd never get to try it.

Thinking about my foster parents suddenly gave me the strangest feeling, almost like a sharp pang in my chest. I felt worried about them but also scared for myself too. They probably both thought I was dead or that I'd run away from home. Or they'd be thinking something to that effect to explain my absence for the past three days. I could only hope that they believed that there was a better explanation for my disappearance that didn't involve either one. Something like maybe I was trying to find out something about my birth parents after finding some random clue or hint about them out of the blue and went on an epic journey to investigate it like in the movies.

At first, all I could think about was getting back home. But now I was starting to feel that child-like excitement you feel when seeing something you know you'll probably never experience again. That's when I decided that maybe I shouldn't look at this experience as a bad thing, regardless of my current predicament. It was a chance for me to meet new people and visit somewhere where no one knew anything about me. A chance to make special memories that I could carry with me instead of the regrets of the past and longing for an unlikely future. A secret world that no one else knew about, how exciting was that? Or so I thought. But I'd discover soon enough that this world wasn't as secret as I was lead to believe...

* * *

 _Flashback: Conrad's POV_

 _When Gwendal returned from the Tomb of the Great One he informed me that Ulrike did sense in fact something unusual a day or two ago. However the light faded from her crystal so quickly that she thought she must have imagined it until he brought it up again. Although it was entirely possible that Yuri's elder brother was just practicing his transportation magic again. He's been doing that a lot lately according to Ulrike._

 _My guess would be that the likely reason for that was because Yuri didn't want him to come over here to the Great Demon Kingdom very often, or ideally at all. Especially after what happened the last time Shori hitched a ride with Yuri. He just wanted to keep his older brother safe, that's all. Both of mine were capable fighters but that didn't stop me from worrying about them as well from time to time. Wolfram in particular since he could be just as unruly as a child sometimes despite being over 82 years old now..._

 _Something told me that in this case it wasn't Shori whose presence she felt this time though. As brief as it was Ulrike said that something about this other power felt strange, as if right now it was only the small embers of a flame trying to alight itself into a true flame. As if it was being suppressed by something and was trying to break free._

 _That was more than enough to convince Gwendal that we should at least consider the possibility that King Saralegui was telling us the truth about discovering someone that possessed the rare ability to cross between our two worlds. And if it turned out that there was another person aside from Yuri with enough power to do that it was certainly worth looking into._

 _So after further discussion Gwendal sent King Saralegui a reply, granting him permission to dock his ship here and telling him that I would be there to meet them when they arrived with the girl. My brother and I thought that would be best since there were several things that I wanted to ask them before Yuri returned from Earth. There was still the off chance that this girl was either someone he knew in some capacity or at the very least was someone from Earth as well._

 _As far as we knew no one had ever accidentally come over to this world before. There was another possibility though and it was that someone had tried to forcefully summon Yuri here the same way they had once before and this girl had unfortunately gotten herself caught up in it instead._

 _Either way we couldn't rule out those possibilities in spite of the improvements Yuri was making when it came to controlling his powers. Even Shori was doing fairly well in his training back on Earth. It was our duty as Yuri's friends and loyal retainers to consider every possible threat to his life. And if someone was in need of help because they had became involved with someone dangerous that was a threat to him then Yuri would want us to do everything in our power to help them._

* * *

Present: Ash's POV

After a brief carriage ride we rode up to the front gates of the castle that overlooked the rest of town. Sometimes I had to seriously remind myself that this was all real when everything around us, to me at least, had such a dream-like quality to it. Riding on a ship at sea was one thing, but being in a real castle surrounded by armed guards with real stereotypical maids in dresses and aprons scurrying all over the place was so surreal. Not to mention the castle itself was so intimidating. I mean the place was freaking huge!

 _I wonder who lives here? Maybe Sara's bringing me to meet the king, or possibly his father or something. If that's the case, I need to try and make a good impression._ Straightening up and taking a deep breath I took my first step inside the castle doors. And the moment I did I felt an unexpected warmth pass through me. It almost felt like…I'd been here before.

"Welcome King Saralegui, Berias," called a handsome middle-aged man as he walked down the stairs in the middle of the foyer to greet us.

He had short light brown hair and gentle pair of earthy brown eyes to match. He was dressed in what looked like a tan military uniform lined with red on the cuffs of the sleeves and the hem of his tunic. There was also a sword resting against his left side; a weight he was obviously accustomed too just like Berias was. I could tell by the way he carried himself and the way he comfortably rested his hand on the hilt while talking to the two of them that he clearly knew how to use that weapon with ease. Better not make a bad impression in front of him either.

I was so caught up with how good-looking he was that I jumped in surprise when he came over to get a closer look at me. "Hi, my name is Ash Falcer. It's nice to-" I stopped half-way through my sentence when I remembered that no one here understood English and blushed bright red. "Crap. That's right, you have no idea what I'm saying…"

"English? You speak English?" he asked, sounding just as surprised as I felt when he spoke.

"Whoa wait. You can actually understand me?!" I asked excitedly, my heart racing.

He nodded.

The feeling of relief was so overwhelming that before I knew it I was hugging him tightly around the waist, completely ignoring how he tensed at the unexpected contact, "Oh my god! Finally! There's someone here I can actually talk to! Maybe now I can get this whole mess sorted out..."

Raising an eyebrow, Sara asked him with an amused smirk, "Lord Weller, what in the world was that language you just used? I've never heard it before. It seems that Ash responded to it though, quite strongly I might add."

Letting go of him and backing off as I continued to blush and send him fleeting stares, the man next to me replied to Sara in their own language, "It's called _'English.'_ It's one of the languages I learned while I was visiting a far off country a very long time ago. I rarely use it anymore."

Looking satisfied with his answer although it looked like he was hoping the man would elaborate more, Sara simply nodded. "I see. As always you are full of hidden talents, Lord Weller. Turns out this one is particularly useful. Now we might be able to get some of the much needed answers we're looking for about where she came from and how she ended up in the middle of the ocean. That is, if I'm assuming you're willing to act as our translator?"

"Of course Your Majesty, we'd also like to know more about her too. Especially given the troubling circumstances you described to us in your letter. At any rate, my older brother is waiting for us in his office and we've already sent a message to the Tomb of the Great One to send for His Highness so he should be here shortly. I'm sure he'll want to know what's going on as well," turning his attention back to me, the man gave me a reassuring smile and switched back to English to introduce himself. "I'm sorry for startling you before when I recognized the language, my name is Conrart Weller. You're Ash Falcer, correct?"

I nodded, "Yes, that's me. Conrart, huh? That sounds a lot like _'Conrad'_ in English…" I mused mostly to myself.

Smiling as if someone had said essentially the same thing to him before, he chuckled, "That's actually a nickname a lot of people prefer to use. If it's easier for you, you may call me that instead."

"Thanks. So Conrad, do you mind if I ask you something?" I asked, feeling my heart beating a thousand miles a minute in anticipation of finally being able to confirm this.

"What is it?" Conrad responded politely.

Glancing back over at Berias and Sara watching us, I gathered my courage to ask, "Well, a bit earlier I saw actual human skeletons with bat wings flying over the castle walls. Ever since we stepped foot here I've had this really strange feeling, like there's something out of place. And that something would be me. I don't know how else to explain it and I think I already know what all that means but, just to make sure I need to know. Is this really another world?"

Inhaling deeply, Conrad looked me straight in the eye and answered in a leveled tone, "Given the fact that I was right about the language you're speaking in being one from Earth the answer would have to be yes, this is another world. Although I'm surprised that you're taking it so easily. Have you ever traveled between worlds before?"

Before I could answer Conrad, I felt Sara's hand on my shoulder and he gave Conrad a stern look that surprised me. I guess he didn't like being excluded from our conversation and was just as eager to find out more about me. It felt kind of strange being the center of attention like this. I wasn't used to it. At least, not the way I was at the moment…

Our trek to the office went by like a blur after the two of them exchanged a few words in their own language because frankly I was still completely dumbstruck by what he said. Me, traveling between worlds? There's no way I had that kind of power, obviously someone else brought me here to save my life from those robed guys. Was traveling between worlds a common thing to do here? Did other people from Earth know about this world? No, more importantly, had Conrad been to Earth before? It sounded like he had and he obviously could speak English but I had so many questions. And more importantly I felt so relieved that there was someone who could help me answer them.

* * *

"My name is Ash Falcer and I'm seventeen years old," I explained to the surly-looking man who Conrad told me was his older brother, Gwendal. "Three days ago I was driving to school when there was a flash of light and a group of men dressed in robes appeared in front of me. After that I crashed into the side of the bridge and fell into the river. The next thing I knew, Berias pulled me out of the wreckage and I was taken to Sara's ship. They treated my injuries but, since we couldn't understand each other that made things very confusing. Somehow I managed to tell them my name and they told me theirs but until now I haven't been able to tell anyone the full story about what happened to me."

Conrad translated that for me and then asked about where exactly I was from and if I remembered any details about the men who appeared. The first question was easy enough but since I didn't know anything else about the other guys, I shook my head and explained, "It all happened way too fast to see anything except that there were at least three hooded guys standing in the middle of the road. Besides, it was raining too and before they showed up I could barely see the road anyway. As for where I live…" feeling a lump form in my throat, I managed to say, "…I guess you could say I've been moved around a lot. I've lived in at least twelve different foster homes so the only thing I can really tell you is that right now I live in the United States of America, most recently in Utah on a horse ranch with my foster parents David and Cheryl. Oh, if it helps you understand what I mean, a _'state'_ is like a smaller province in the country where I live. There's 50 of them in America."

Stunned by that revelation, Conrad asked me, "You're an orphan?"

"Yeah. Unfortunately. I never knew my real parents and when I was a baby I was told that a wounded man that wasn't my father was brought to the nearest hospital for intensive care and the only thing he managed to tell anyone before he died was my name: Ashlynn. Everybody calls me Ash though," I smiled weakly. "So yeah, I'm an orphan but that's not really the point-" looking Conrad's brother in the eye with all the courage I could muster, I told Conrad to tell him, "-tell your brother that if you guys know a way to do it, I'd like to go back to Earth. This experience has been interesting and all but I didn't come here because I wanted to. I really don't know how it happened. I don't know if those men brought me here or if they were after someone else. All I know is that I want to go home. I don't belong here. Even if David and Cheryl aren't my real parents, they deserve better than to think I ran off or that I died in a car crash. Please. I know there's nothing I can do to repay you but I need help. I can't do this on my own."

After translating that for his brother and the rest of them, Conrad told me that there were a few things they needed to discuss in private before they could decide on anything. I could understand that, but I couldn't help but frown a little. Just how much longer was I going to be stuck in this world…?


	5. Improbability

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

* * *

Chapter 5: Improbability

* * *

 _(Tears in the Rain by TheKeybladeForger)_

 _Verse 1:_

 _Walking with no destination_

 _I try to forget the life I've led so far._

 _All those dreams now turned to dust._

 _I wish it'd all just wash away_

 _Like tears in the rain._

 _Let the roaring thunder drown out my cries_

 _For someone to get me through this._

 _Cause I know I'm on my own._

 _Let those darkened clouds obscure the sky_

 _So I can't see those distant stars I used to wish on._

 _They're nothing but a cruel reminder_

 _Of how far away my dreams are._

 _Chorus:_

 _And let the rain_

 _(Let the rain)_

 _Hide these tears_

 _(Hide these tears)_

 _That I've tried_

 _(That I've tried)_

 _Not to shed._

 _Verse 2:_

 _From right outside the window_

 _I see a world I'll never be a part of._

 _I'm on the outside looking in_

 _Because it's the only place I know._

" _Keep going on," they always say_

" _Things are sure to get better soon."_

 _How can they hope to know_

 _The weight of the burdens that I bear?_

 _All I can do is force a smile_

 _And pretend that I'm ok._

 _But knowing in my heart it's all a lie,_

 _A lie I even try to tell myself._

 _That doesn't mean I haven't tried_

 _To find a way to make it real._

 _Though in the end_

 _I often find myself on the verge of tears_

 _From trying to be stronger than I am all on my own._

" _I can't do this anymore!" I want to scream,_

" _Just let me cry, until I can find that place inside_

 _And remember what I'm still fighting for!_

 _Just let them fall…"_

 _Chorus:_

 _And let the rain_

 _(Let the rain)_

 _Hide these tears_

 _(Hide these tears)_

 _That I've tried_

 _(That I've tried)_

 _Not to shed._

 _Verse 3:_

 _As another year rolls by_

 _Like gray clouds passing overhead._

 _The promise of a storm about to end_

 _With a multicolored arch to brighten the sky_

 _And raindrops glittering in the sunlight._

 _There will always be tears_

 _But not all of them sad._

 _Some tears come from joy and love_

 _To release the pool of emotions_

 _Overflowing in my heart._

 _That's why through all these gray skies_

 _I musn't give up hope._

 _Because there will always be tears_

 _Like there will always be rain._

 _So I gotta keep on living my life…_

 _Final Chorus:_

 _And let the rain_

 _(Let the rain)_

 _Fall where it may_

 _(Fall where it may)_

 _To give way to_

 _(To give way to)_

 _A brighter day._

* * *

The Great Demon Kingdom: Ash's POV

Lying awake in bed in the room they lent me, I stared up at the ceiling and thought about what Conrad translated for me. So apparently this castle belonged to someone named _'Yuri'_ who was their current King and a good friend of Sara's, which meant that we weren't in his country after all. Sara explained with Conrad's help that because very few people had enough power to travel between worlds he had thought it was a good idea to bring me here to find out whether or not I came from this country or the one Yuri was, which I obviously hadn't, even if the two of us were possibly from the same world. I still didn't understand why they kept thinking I had ANY sort of magical talents though…

That being said though, going off of what I told them it was even more important that they talked to their King about all this because those men that appeared were most likely after him and not me. Still, something about that bothered me. Of all the places on Earth to end up, why would they randomly appear in front of me? I mean if they were going through all this trouble to go after this Yuri guy you'd think they'd have a better idea of where he was. Or maybe I was just cursing my rotten luck at getting dragged into this.

With a sigh, I sat up and wandered around the room to take in as much detail as possible. After all, if this whole mess ever got sorted out I was probably going to be going home soon and I'd never see anything like this again. And what's funny is that I still half-expected the room to start swaying beneath me since I've been cooped up on a boat for the last three days. The furniture was all made of the same polished light-brown wood, including the canopy bed I was lying on earlier. The walls of course were solid stone and cool to the touch. And a finely decorated chandelier hung overhead casting a warm reddish glow over the whole room.

After a while I went to look out the window down at the courtyard below and sat down against the windowsill. Another day had come and gone and the sun was already starting to descend below the horizon, painting the sky a dozen shades of blue, pink, and orange. It was beautiful.

The color of the sky at sunrise and sunset were both my favorite times of the day. Sometimes I liked to climb onto the roof of the house just to watch the sunrise turn the horizon a bright fiery gold. I liked normal blue skies as much as anyone else but something about seeing the sky cast in a blend of different colors seemed more exciting to me. Maybe because it was the only time of day that no matter how many time you'd see the same thing happen, something would always be different about it. Like it was a small precious moment that could never be relived. The sky would always be blue, but each day was a brand new beginning, a clean slate burning away the regrets of yesterday.

* * *

Earth: Yuri's POV

"Hey Murata, do you know if this has ever happened before? Someone going over to the other world by accident or anything?" I asked him before we got ready to jump into the bathtub after he told me what the Great One told him in a dream or however the heck those two secretly communicated.

Murata shrugged, "No clue. As far as I know we're the only people who've used this technique to actually go from one world to the next and not just move around in that one. There are other people in the human lands who know how to use it, but, to my knowledge at least the only times they've really tried to use it is when they wanted to interfere with you getting back to the Great Demon Kingdom specifically. Up until now no one aside from us have ever tried to come over here to this side from there. With the exception of that one time when Undine's twin sister attacked Bob while looking for the Key to the Bottom of the Mirror."

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that," I replied thoughtfully with a nervous laugh, rubbing the back of my neck. "But that's different because she's a distant relative of Ulrike. She already knew that technique from a long time ago right? I dunno, something about this whole thing seems fishy to me. If they knew enough about that technique to use it and were after me, they never had as much trouble messing with our transportation before. And my magic really stands out so it's hard to believe they'd mistake her for me."

"That's why we're going back to meet this girl in person. If anything she was probably just in the wrong place at the wrong time so we should help her get back home if we can." After that Murata winked at me and pulled me into a headlock as he whispered deviously in my ear, "Besides, I hear she's way cute so maybe she'll give us each a thank-you kiss."

Shoving him away I blurted in embarrassment, "Murata! D-don't say things like that! What if she's got a boyfriend already?"

Laughing at me he continued with his joke, "Oh right, sorry, I forget sometimes that you're already happily engaged and all that. In that case you don't mind if I try my luck with her, right?"

"Pfft, get real!" I laughed back, elbowing him in the ribs. "You're way too nerdy to land a pretty girl like that anyway. You're also way too old for her."

"Am not," he pouted. "My soul may be over four thousand years old but right now I'm just a sixteen-year-old highschooler who's down on his luck with the ladies over here in this world. But over there the ladies can't get enough of me!"

I rolled my eyes and snickered, "Yeah yeah, the priestesses just can't get enough of their strong and handsome built-in housekeeper…"

Becoming serious again, Murata said, "At any rate, we better hurry and go before-"

"Oh! Welcome home Shori. How was your day?" I heard my mother call from the living room as soon as the front door opened.

Cringing, I whispered in a hurried tone, "Crap, Shori's home early! Murata, hurry up and get in before he realizes we're leaving!"

However, the moment I thought that I heard him drop his bags and make a beeline into the bathroom, grabbing me from behind around the waist which made me yelp in surprise. "Oh no you don't little brother, you promised that I could the three of us over there next time! I can't believe you're trying to weasle out of it!"

"Uh oh, we've been busted…" Murata lamented. "I hate to ask but would you mind we postponed that? We've got a bit of a situation over there on the other side."

Shori frowned deeply, "Great. What happened this time?"

Not wanting him to grill Murata the way he usually does I craned my neck to look at him and answered quickly, "Well, there's this girl named Ash that was transported to the other world by accident somehow and she's from Earth too. Sara saved her from the middle of the ocean on his way back to Small Shimaron from Seisakoku after they finished up things there. We're going back to the castle for a bit to find out what happened because the reason she ended up there has something to do with a couple of weirdos dressed up in hoods. And unless they were cosplaying I think we all know where they came from. The question now is, what were they really after and what does it have to do with her?"

"Then that's all the more reason for me to go too!" Shori argued, finally letting go of me. "I don't know about these robed guys but what if I did something that messed up the time-space passage by mistake? What if it's my fault she got stuck there? It's possible right? And if it's my fault because of all the practice I've been doing then it's my duty as the future Demon King of Earth to set things right. I'll let you do the driving this time but please Yuri, will you take me with you? I want to help."

Surprised that Shori was not only acting more reasonable than usual but was actually asking for permission to go, I couldn't help but feel like he was finally starting to treat me a bit more like an adult then just his kid brother. It won me over and in the end I gave him a nod and said he could come, much to Murata's dismay at which moment Shori immediately put on a silly grin and scooped me up again, planning to jump in the water without warning.

"Wah! Shori, hold on a-" I protested but it was too late. Shori had already jumped into the bathtub with both Murata and myself in tow and we started our journey back to the Great Demon King when I instinctively used my power to take us there. Back to where this girl was waiting who we'd soon find out was way more important than any of us thought…


	6. Birth by Fire

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

* * *

Chapter 6: Birth by Fire

* * *

The Great Demon Kingdom: Conrad's POV

"An orphan huh? I'm surprised she let something so personal about herself slip like that. Then again, that's probably due to the excitement of finally having someone around who understood her language," Gwendal commented after Ash was escorted out of the room so the rest of us could finish discussing what to do next. "Well no matter. From what I can Ashlynn is just a normal human girl. I for one didn't sense any unusual power from her. Did you feel anything Gunter?"

Gunter shook his head and crossed his arms thoughtfully. "Not exactly, however, that doesn't mean she doesn't have power. I did feel something. It was very faint though. Almost as if it's being suppressed..."

"That's exactly what I felt as well," Berias commented, glancing over at me as he explained further. "While tending to her injuries I felt small fluctuations of power reacting to my Esoteric healing skills. King Saralegui felt this as well when he took her hand while we were making an attempt to explain that we were coming here to the Great Demon Kingdom for your assistance concerning how she ended up in the middle of the ocean. At least it's clear now thanks to your translation Lord Weller that the Demon Tribe not responsible for what happened to her. That being said though, who do you think those robed men could have been?"

Taking care not to tell them too much about Earth just like when I was translating for them, I replied, "Lately we have noticed some strange activity concerning the interspatial passage that His Majesty often uses to come over here from his birth home. But most of that is because his older brother Shori has been practicing how to use it himself so we haven't been too concerned about that until we received your letter. Considering what Ash told us, it's entirely possible that someone tried to use that confusion to their advantage to slip His Majesty over there unnoticed. That would be my guess."

"What should we do about her then?" Gunter asked curiously. "She clearly isn't someone from the Demon Tribe so I say we investigate the matter of the robed men in greater detail first to determine what they were after before sending her back home. We don't want to put her in any more unnecessary danger. Does that sound agreeable?"

Standing up from his seat Saralegui clapped his hands together as he agreed whole-heartedly. But then, Saralegui surprised us when he added with a sly glint in his eyes, "Of course! I'd like nothing more than to help her get home safely, but there's no need to rush is there? Ash still hasn't fully recovered yet and besides which I think it would be a waste not to perform some kind of test to find out exactly what sort of power she does have if what we've already sensed in her is genuine. After all, we still don't know if Ash WAS brought here by someone else's power-" smiling knowingly, he finished, "-or under her own the same way that Yuri does."

"The way I do what?" asked a voice I recognized at once as Yuri's.

We all turned towards the door when Yuri slipped into the room along with His Eminence, Shori, and Wolfram who had gone to the Tomb to meet up with them. It was good to see Yuri's smiling face again. A lot has happened to him in the last few months since the incident with Alazon and Janis and for a while I was worried that Yuri's smile would never be the same again. I was also concerned about him when we all thought that Yuri's powers were gone and the three of them would never be able to return to their home back on Earth. When it turned out that we were wrong about him losing his powers it was a relief to see him back in high spirits again.

"Welcome back Your Highness," I smiled, pulling a chair out so he could take a seat. "And it looks like you brought Shori with you this time. Did you tell him what's going on?"

Yuri nodded and gratefully took the seat I offered him. "Yeah. At least the gist of it anyway. I'm still waiting to hear the whole story myself."

"Yuri," Saralegui called from his seat across the table with what looked like a genuinely warm smile. "It's good to see you again."

I could see in his expression that Saralegui still felt a sense of guilt for the trouble he caused the last time he was here but for the most part he just seemed truly happy to see Yuri again. Having the chance to see Yuri again so soon was most likely his biggest reason for coming here, and not so much about Ash's welfare. He was curious to be sure about her, but I sincerely doubted that Saralegui's fascination with Yuri had abated since the last time they met and changed directions towards Ashlynn…

A boyish grin spread across Yuri's face as he replied, "You too. So Sara, can you tell me more about this girl you saved? I only know what Murata told us. Where is she anyway?"

"In her room. We thought that it would be better to discuss the matter of sending her home until we spoke to you about the...unusual circumstances that brought her here," Gwendal explained. But before he could continue, His Eminence raised a hand to silence him so he could speak.

"Before you give us your report I want to confirm something with King Saralegui. Is that alright?"

Puzzled, Gwendal nodded, "Go right ahead."

Turning towards, King Saralegui His Eminence asked in all seriousness, "King Saralgui, can you tell me exactly what you saw that lead you to this girl in the ocean?"

"Of course. We were on our way back to Small Shimaron when we saw a light and felt a strong power coming from that direction. Why? Is there something important about that?" Saralegui asked in response, quirking an eyebrow.

He nodded and gave Yuri a quick glance, "I think so. Now, what direction was the light coming from? Was it from above or under the water?"

Looking rather puzzled himself and obviously missing the point of these questions, Saralegui answered thoughtfully, "Now that you mention it, when we reached the source of the light it was under the water and by then there was only a faint trace of it left. That's when Berias realized that there was someone trapped down there and dove into the water after them. Shortly after bringing Ashlynn aboard Berias told me that when he saw her she was desperately struggling to get out of some strange metal object with two flickering shafts of light in front of it that were slowly burning out as she sunk further down. It was too dark to make out what the metal device once the lights died out completely though so I'm afraid that is all I know."

"Just as I thought," His Eminence concluded before addressing the rest of us too. "It's no coincidence that she ended up here. An important friend of ours told me about an unusual incident that was brought to his attention recently. Apparently, someone _did_ use transportation magic other than Shibuya or Shori, and that of course gave me a good reason to visit them and find out just who used it. During our investigation, we found out about a missing person's report concerning the sudden disappearance of a girl named Ashlynn Falcer. The same girl that King Saralegui has obviously just rescued. It said that her car crashed over a bridge, but neither the car or Ashlynn's body were found anywhere in the river below. Which by the way was supposed to be a very shallow one. But, there's something else about this incident that I think you should all know about before we do anything hasty-" making sure he had our full attention, His Eminence told us something that none of us, especially Saralegui I'm sure, expected to hear, "-this was found at the scene when they were investigating the broken bridge. And it means that this is a lot bigger then you might think."

Reaching into his pants pocket, His Eminence pulled out a small metal pin with the crest of an enemy we all believed to be long gone. It was the crest of none other than the White Crows themselves…

* * *

Bedroom: Ash's POV

Wondering what was taking them so long I was just about to get out of bed again when a loud crash in the room next door startled me into full alertness. I'd closed the curtains in my room earlier to take a short nap and didn't realize how late it was until I wrenched them open to see where the crash came from. It came from the room next door. And I had a sinking feeling that I knew what it was when I saw a glimpse of a dark figure entering through the broken window.

"This is bad, I better get out of here and find help." And with that I looked around the room again for something I could use in case I had to defend myself. As expected I didn't find anything but the candlestick holder beside my bed which wasn't going to do me any good if this guy was armed with a sword like most of the people around here.

I was still looking for something to use when my door boomed open and a hooded man blocked the doorway. "Crap!" I cursed, ripping the blanket off of my bed to throw over him to at least buy me enough time to slip past him.

He must have guessed my plan though because as soon as I tossed the blanket he drew his sword and cut it clean in half. But that action still gave me enough time to dash past him. I didn't want anyone to get hurt but I knew that the first thing I needed to do was find some guards to help me. They were better equipped to dealing with this kind of threat than I was. I knew basic self-defense against stalkers, however, men armed with swords obviously weren't taken into account in those attack scenarios. Honestly I'm surprised there weren't any guards posted in front of my door already. Or I guess they didn't consider me dangerous which was kinda obvious.

The hooded guy followed after me as soon as I ran down the hall, his sword still drawn which couldn't be good news for me. It almost hurt how fast my heart was beating. I was scared, but I used that fear to keep going even though my legs felt like giving way a few times. After all I wasn't exactly at one hundred percent yet.

I had only just glanced over my shoulder for a second to check if I'd made any distance between us when I tripped over someone…A very small someone.

"Ouch," I winced, turning around to ask if they were alright when I saw that that guy was catching up fast! Without wasting a second I suddenly grabbed her tiny wrist and we started running away together.

Turns out I'd just run smack dab into a little girl that looked about ten years old with rich brown curls, dark skin, and jade green eyes that was dressed in a really cute purple and white outfit. I didn't have time to catch her name in all the excitement though so that's pretty much all I knew about her. And now I had someone else I needed to keep safe besides myself.

"Damn it where is everyone?!" I grumbled. "Aren't castles like these supposed to have guards?!"

"What's going on? Who are you?" the little girl tried to ask me breathlessly.

I couldn't understand her but I looked back at her and smiled encouragingly, "It's going to be ok. I promise. Just keep running!"

Just when it seemed like we were both going to run out of breath, I was relieved when a group of soldiers along with Sara, Berias, and the others from the meeting earlier rounded the corner once we made it to a fork in the hallway. I was surprised though when I saw several new faces in their group. There was another pretty blonde-haired boy dressed in a blue uniform and three other boys with black hair and eyes beside him that looked decidedly Asian.

That small distraction cost me though when I lost my grip on the little girl's hand and she tripped. Instinctively, I whirled around to help her up but the other guy reached her first, yanking her up by the collar before holding his blade to her throat.

Furious I screamed, "Let go of her you jerk!"

"Nobody move or the girl dies!" he retorted back at us once the others noticed what was going on and hurried over. The man retreated one step back at a time away from us and the soldiers but he never took his eyes off of me in particular, which could only mean-!

"Gretta!" one of the boys behind me cried, "Are you ok?!"

Tears building in her eyes she gave a small nod. "I-I'm ok. But I don't know what's going on…"

"Everyone step back!" Conrad ordered the soldiers who reluctantly lowered their weapons. Then, returning his attention to the kidnapper and me, Conrad asked him carefully. "What do you want?"

Nodding in my direction, the man replied, "I'm only here for the girl. Nobody needs to die as long as she comes with me quietly."

"What's he saying?" I nervously called back to Conrad, my fists trembling in both fear and frustration at not being able to do anything.

"He says he wants you, Ash," Conrad explained to me in English.

"Me? But doesn't that mean-" turning my head as far back as I dared, I told him in a quivering voice, "-ask him if he was one of the men from the bridge."

Conrad nodded did as I asked and then told me the man's response, "He says he's not, but he does work for the ones who went to find you. Now he wants to exchange you for Gretta or he'll kill her."

The moment I heard that, something inside of me just snapped. I felt so much anger towards someone who would dare threaten an innocent child who got caught up in my mess. It wasn't her fault. It wasn't my fault that this was happening either. But I was so sick of not being able to control or understand my destiny. I wasn't going to anyone get hurt on my account. This wasn't their problem, so ignoring Conrad's imploring look not to do what I was about to do and give into their demands I started walking towards the hooded man with the full intention of handing myself over.

Before I knew it though, I felt a strong power surge from deep inside of me with each step I took but I didn't dare stop or look hesitant when a life was at stake. Something inside of me was stirring, something similar to what I felt when I crashed into the river but much stronger and it scared me how real it felt so there was no denying it now. I had power. And it was real enough to use against this coward!

A warm wind started to billow around me, as if the air around me had been set ablaze. It didn't hurt though. The fire that was now licking my bare skin didn't hurt at all. I surprised myself even more when the next words out of my mouth weren't in English, but the language I assumed was the native one here. "Let her go, now."

"Ah, and there she is," the man smiled menacingly, "It took us a long time to find you but we knew you were still alive out there somewhere. We always knew this world would call you back someday. There's no way you would choose to continue to live under such constraints for that long, not when you have this much power just waiting to be awakened once more. I'm glad I get to be the first to see it in action."

Feeling the fire within me growing unbearably intense, I repeated harshly. "Didn't you hear me? I said LET-HER-GO!"

Focusing my rage on a single point so that Gretta wouldn't get hurt, I willed my power into his sword which turned cherry-red and he dropped it with a pained cry, gripping his singed hand tightly. The moment he let go Gretta ran behind me and hugged the boy that called her name before. Seeing that she was safe, I smiled before turning back to her kidnapper, resisting the urge to use more of this overwhelming power to teach him a lesson.

But instead of lashing out at him like I'm sure everyone was expecting, I picked up his still-burning sword and tossed it down the nearest empty hallway. Far out of his reach. "You're going to answer for what you've done. As you said though, no one needs to die today. Not even a scumbag like you. I'm not worth killing for…"

After that I felt the fire within me subside and I stumbled against the nearest wall and slid down to the floor, panting. I felt so tired and was deeply confused and troubled by the whole thing. What just happened to me? I understood everything that man said just now! I even used magic against him! Real magic that actually come from me after all. While part of me felt exhilarated by that power, it also made me feel the exact same feeling I've had ever since I found out that I was an orphan. Like suddenly, I didn't know myself at all anymore. I was just as much a stranger to myself as the people here were to me.


	7. Repressed Memory

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

* * *

Chapter 7: Repressed Memory

 _(Chapter inspired by Let It Burn by Red)_

* * *

~Ash's POV~

When it was all over and the soldiers moved in to take my attacker away, I sat against the wall for a long time trying to process what I just found out about his motives. Conrad told me before my sudden auto-translation powers kicked in that the would-be kidnapper said he worked for the people I nearly crashed into when this all started. So at least now I knew that they _were_ actually after me back then. I didn't want to be any part of what they were planning. Whatever it was…I just wanted out of this place. I wanted to go home.

"What's happening to me?" I asked no one in particular as I stared down at my trembling hands. "H-how did I do that…?"

Frowning, the other blonde boy grumbled under his breath. "That's what I'd like to know."

Jerking in surprise when I realized that I understood him, I looked up and asked him, "What did you just say?"

"I said that I'd like to know what the hell just happened too. How dare you put Gretta in danger like that?" the boy snapped harshly.

I shrank back a bit because of the intensity of his anger, but managed a feeble reply, "No I-that's not what I meant. What you just said, I understood everything. Every word. I don't-"

Trailing off, I curled my knees up close to my chest and tightly closed my eyes when my head started to throb painfully. I managed to compose myself in the heat of the moment when that little girl was threatened but I think the stress of this whole situation was starting to get to me. This feeling reminded me of the overwhelming anxiety that put me in the hospital and eventually led to my transfer into a new foster home.

Thinking back on it now, I wondered if even that was somehow related to what was happening right now in some small way. If every single problem that got in the way of my adoption for all these years had to do with everything that has led up to this moment. I was probably overthinking things a little bit, but, that's the only thing that made sense. I was being sabotaged and called here to this world for some reason.

At some point in my life the wheels of fate started turning a little faster just to bring me to this world. To trap me here. To awaken an extraordinary and powerful part of me that I never knew about until now. It made me feel a bit uneasy though because using it for the first time felt good, almost too good. I've never felt so alive before. It felt as natural to me as breathing…

And that was probably the scariest part about it.

Putting his hands on my shoulders, Conrad asked me, "Are you alright? What's wrong?"

"My head!" I winced and opened one eye to look up at him. "It hurts so bad. And m-my ears are ringing again. I can...I can hardly hear anything but the ringing now..."

"Again? You mean this has happened before?" he asked in a level and strangely guarded tone when I realized he hadn't switched back to English yet I understood him fine.

I nodded tearfully before closing my eyes again. "When I first got here, whenever I was around other people and they started talking my ears kept ringing and for some reason I could understand some of the words they were using. I thought it was because I had a concussion and I was only imagining that I could understand. What's wrong with me Conrad? A-am I some kind of a freak?"

Shaking his head, Conrad assured me, "No, you're not a freak. You're just...different from what we originally thought. Now come on, we need to get you back to your room and send for a doctor. Can you stand?"

Biting my lip, I removed my hands from my head and bravely tried to sit up despite wanting nothing more then to curl in on myself. Somehow I managed to at least lift myself into a standing position but my legs still were so shaky that I doubted I'd get very far by walking before falling flat on my face. Conrad must have guessed as much because he wordlessly scooped me up into his arms before I even had time to let out a startled gasp.

"Wolfram, go get Geisila and tell her to come as soon as possible," Conrad ordered the blonde boy in the blue uniform.

He nodded somewhat reluctantly and then dashed down the opposite hall out of sight. Quite honestly, I was relieved to see him go. The last thing I needed right now was someone blaming me for what happened and shouting at me. Not that he was entirely wrong about it being my fault that that little girl was involved but how was I supposed to know someone was ACTUALLY after me? Up until then I thought coming to this world was a total accident.

I should have known better.

Accidents like that don't just happen, not to normal people. Teenage girl's don't get whisked away to alternate worlds at random like in some twisted storybook fantasy. I guess I just didn't want to accept that because it made the question about who I was all that much harder to answer.

* * *

Gwendal's office: Yuri's POV

Once Ash was taken back to her room so Geisila could find out what was wrong with her, Gretta filled us in on what actually happened. But as usual Wolfram kept grumbling about how this _'wasn't our problem'_ and that Sara should have just dropped her off somewhere on his way home and left her there. Of course I was ready to jump in to defend him and Ash when Gretta spoke up again.

"Wolfram, please don't be mad at her. It's my fault the scary man grabbed me," Gretta pleaded as she gently took his hand and looked up with those big green eyes of hers that were nearly impossible to resist. "When I heard that Yuri and Uncle Shori were coming back I got so excited that I immediately left my room to go see if he was home yet with his big brother. That's when I ran into her by accident. She looked really scared and when that man saw us together she did her best to keep me safe! She's not a bad person!"

Of course, Gretta's cuteness won him over and Wolfram begrudgingly replied with a slight blush, "Well, I guess that's true. It did seem like she was willing to sacrifice herself for you. I'll give her that. I'm still mad though."

Rolling my eyes at him I said, "Wolfram, admit it, you're always mad about something."

Pouting, he protested. "Am not!"

"Ok, not as much as you used to be but you really need to control your temper!" I frowned, scolding him. "Ash was already freaking out because she was attacked out of the blue like that and could suddenly use magic after all then you go and yell at her! She's probably more confused about this whole thing then we are. Think about it. We all thought the White Crows were gone, but not only are they back, but they were sent after HER. That's gotta mean something!"

"Those guys…" Shori said, arms crossed. "We should have known that some of them probably survived Big Shimaron's attack on their base but the question is why this girl is so important to them. Ok, sure, she's clearly got some pretty impressive fire powers, that much we already know from what we just saw. But what's so special about it that they'd go so far out of their way to get their hands on this one girl?"

A silence fell over the room while we each came up with our own theories. My guess was that Ash was actually born in this world and maybe something bad happened that forced her parents to send her away with a trusted friend or servant. That would explain the random wounded guy from her origin story that wasn't her dad. Once they arrived though her protector died and no one was left on Earth who could tell Ash the truth about where she came from or what she was capable of. And that's why she didn't know she had powers and couldn't believe it when they activated for the first time as a defense mechanism.

Classic case of misplaced identity. Although her case was more extreme than mine was. At least I had my parents and people over on this side who were there to look out for me. But as far as we knew, Ash didn't have anybody like that...

"Sara?" I called from across the table and leaned over to talk to him. "What do you think about all this?"

I was surprised when Sara replied seriously, "I think that it would be in our best interest and Ash's to find out more about the man that tried to abduct her. Because I for one am not entirely convinced that the White Crows are responsible for this. There might be someone else involved that is simply using the White Crows emblem as an alias to hide their true identity or to make us believe that they're more powerful than they really are. As for Ash herself, I'm deeply concerned about the state she's in right now. Seeing as it's clear now that Ash does in fact have memories of our language hidden inside of her subconscious, I for one am glad that I thought to bring her here rather than go back to Small Shimaron right away. You're probably better equipped to help her through this than I am Yuri. Especially since your friend Conrad can speak the language she's used to using in her daily life should this...temporary understanding of our language wear off. I don't see that there's much else I can do for her at this point to be perfectly honest with you…"

"Translation. You mean that you're planning on dumping her here with us?" Shori snickered. "That's just great. Some help you were..."

Adjusting his glasses and meeting my older brother's harsh gaze, Sara replied cordially. "On the contrary, I'm paying Yuri a compliment. You've done more for her in less than a day than I was able to do in several. He's lucky to have such resourceful retainers who can find out so much information regarding her situation so quickly. I would expect nothing less from the illustrious Demon Tribe. And regretfully, I didn't realize that we were being followed until it was already too late. She is my responsibility Lord Shori, I am fully aware of that. However, if you're still willing, I'd like to get to the bottom of this as soon as possible because I still need to return to Small Shimaron soon. In which case I must decide what is best for Ash and everyone involved in this matter. If she is safer here then with me, I am obligated to ask that your king give the poor girl shelter from the danger she is obviously in."

Once Sara spoke his peace, the rest of us continued to discuss what we should do next. That's when I decided that the first thing we should do was make sure Ash's condition was stable enough to send her over to the Tomb of the Great One to see Ulrike. Because if anyone could help her sort out these conflicting memories and out-of-wack powers, it was Lady Ulrike.

Besides, as soon as we got back home even the Great One himself was telling us he was curious about Ash. He could sense something unusual about her too and it fascinated him. And we all knew how dangerous that his _'fascination'_ could be…

At any rate, as soon as Ash's health was in better shape we were going to interrogate the guy who broke into the castle and find out more about his employers. If everything went well, then maybe Ash would be able to go home soon and forget about all this for awhile and we could take care of the rest ourselves whether these were real White Crows or not. I only saw her for a few minutes but I could see it in her eyes how frustrated and confused she was. I could relate to that from back when I became the Demon King. So if I could spare her that kind of hardship, I'd like to at least try. That was my duty as a king, and as a decent human being to do everything in my power to help her not feel as alone and helpless anymore.


	8. Flight of the Crows

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note:** Sorry this chapter is so short. I wasn't planning on switching perspectives so much but while Ash is _'recovering'_ behind the scenes there isn't much to talk about from her point of view right now. Hopefully, if I can do this right then soon I'll be able to keep things solely from her point of view for the majority of the time. Until then though, enjoy this chapter!

* * *

Chapter 8: Flight of the Crows

* * *

Dungeon: Sara's POV

Considering the fact that he was being held prisoner the man that attacked Ash was surprisingly calm when I came in to interrogate him. With Yuri's permission of course. He was a middle-aged man with a sullen face and a worn appearance reminiscent of a common outlaw. There were no outwards signs that he worked with the White Crows since as I recall, most of them wore uniforms that served them best by hiding in the shadows that were emblazon with their official crest. This man bore none of those qualities. In fact, when he attacked Yuri's adopted daughter, the man was less than subtle in his approach to the situation he found himself in when Ash eluded him the first time. This proved that even if he did in fact work for the White Crows, he possessed none of their prowess. And more then likely, any of their intelligence which suited me just fine.

"Well well, getting interrogated personally by the King of Small Shimaron, I'm honored," he smirked cockily. "By the way, how's our little protégé doing? A little birdie told me that she blacked out after I was locked up in here. Using too much power will do that to ya."

Brushing my fingertips across the table between the two of us, I replied calmly, "What's the point of asking a question that you already know the answer to? As I recall, you mentioned that you felt so _'honored'_ to see Ash use her powers for the first time. Meaning that you already knew that she had them from the beginning. That is why you decided to threaten that child. It was all an act to get an emotional response out of Ash. Most would have fled long before they were caught to try capturing the girl again later. Admit it."

Leaning backward in his seat the man let out a laugh and then sat upright again to face me. Although now, there was no mockery in his eyes. Now they were full of defiance as he said, "So what if it was? I had to be sure I found the right girl. My employers would have been pissed if I messed up again. Do you have any idea how many brown-haired young women there are around in the world that look exactly like her? She could have been any one of them. Sure she's pretty, but she's also so boring and ordinary looking unlike that Demon King fella. You can spot him from miles away..."

"How long exactly have you been looking for Ashlynn Falcer?" Berias asked him seriously. "We're the only ones who should have known about her arrival aside from Lord Weller and his elder brother, to whom we recently sent an encoded letter. So how did you track her here to this castle? Speak."

Crossing his arms the best he could in spite of the shackles binding his wrists the man snorted. "I'm not obligated to tell you people anything. If you're gonna kill me, you might as well get on with it. I told 'em I wasn't cut out for all this sneaky stuff but the money was good so I took the job. As far as they're concerned I did my part by at least making her use magic. Now she'll be much easier for 'em to track down themselves wherever she goes from now on. I say do yourselves a favor and cut her loose while you still can, because you have no idea who you're messing with. These guys are ruthless. If you don't kill me, they're sure as hell going to do it for ya."

Settling myself into the chair in front of the table, I smiled sweetly and took great pleasure in watching him squirm under the intensity of my gaze. He must have been aware by now that unlike Yuri I wasn't so easily misled. There was more to the story than he was letting on and this whole act of being disposable was just an act as well. I could see it in his eyes. That slight quivering in his pupils that betrayed his fear of being caught in a lie. He didn't want to die. At least not by their hands if the _'ruthlessness'_ of these new White Crows was to be believed.

Leaning forward in my seat and pretending to remove my glasses in order to clean them, I peered up at him with my most pleasant smile. "I assure you, I can be far more ruthless to those who think they can get away with trying to deceive me. The way I see it you have two choices." Then, after gently setting my glasses on the table, I gave him the two options. "You can either tell me who you work for or we can simplify things by having you tell me exactly who Ash Falcer really is. Although, there's always the third option…"

Swallowing hard, he dared to ask, "W-what's the third option?"

"I'm glad you asked," I smiled as I drew upon my power of suggestion and felt that all-too-familiar sensation of my eyes starting to change color. "The third option is that I take all of that information from you whether you give it to me willingly or not."

* * *

In the end, I got exactly what I wanted from him without having to resort to using my powers. The fear I invoked in the simpleminded outlaw was more then enough to make him spill his darkest secrets to me, even some I'd would rather not have heard. I doubt Yuri would be very happy with me if I had gone through with my threat to force the information out of him but regardless, it was imperative to find out just how much danger Ash was in before blindly offering my full protection to her.

Up until Ash's second failed kidnapping attempt, since the first one was what brought her to me, I thought that helping her would be a simple matter. Not only that, but it would be a good way to impress Yuri by helping someone out of the goodness of my heart without looking for anything in return. I never could have imagined that something as simple as pulling Ash out of the sea would lead to all this. Would lead me to someone was valuable as this strange girl.

It certainly increased my interest in her. Especially if Ash's powers were really as special as he claimed that they were. Now all I needed to do was see if we could bring out Ash's full potential too, in a more controlled setting of course. It could prove useful. Besides, I'm sure that Ash must feel indebted to us for rescuing her so if I could convince her to use those powers to repay me then the time I've spent idle here would be worth the delay in our return journey.

As soon as I returned, I revealed to Yuri and the others the truth about the men who were behind this recent attack and Ash's accident. Apparently, some of the members of the White Crow did survive King Ranjeel's wrath and fled deep into more remote territory to escape his attention. And while they were there those members were approached by a stranger who offered them protection in exchange for using their skills and resources to find a certain young woman. Unfortunately, our prisoner didn't know anything more than that but it was enough to prove my theory…

"So you were right. The White Crows appear to have a new patron," Lord Weller commented. "Now all that's left is to find out who it is."

"Not so fast," His Eminence interjected, "King Saralegui, did the kidnapper happen to mention what territory they're located in? It may give us a better idea of where they were trying to send Ash when your ship found her."

Thinking back on what he said, I regrettably informed him that the kidnapper's employers were very careful not to give away their main base's location after what happened to the previous one. What I did learn though was that they met with him in an abandoned village on the very edge of Caloria's northern border near the forest where I met them-and Yuri of course-face to face for the first time.

After that, I turned back to Yuri and further explained, "I've heard of that village. A long time ago it was called Cyrset, which in older dialect of our language means _'Celestial fall.'_ It was a village once famous for its beautiful view of the sunset. But sadly, during the war twenty years ago it was almost completely destroyed. And rather than rebuild the village when the war was finally over, it was left abandoned. Bandits take refuge there from time to time but no one has lived there ever since. It's a shame really. I would have loved to show it to you."

Clearing his throat, Yuri's fiancé interjected. "For your information, my mother actually has been there before. And you're right. It was a nice little place, once upon a time. But things change. Especially during wartime."

His negativity was obviously making Yuri uncomfortable so he pulled Lord Bielefelt aside to reprimand him for being so rude and basically accusing Shimaron as a whole for that pointless war. Not that I particularly cared one way or another. I expected that from him.

Although I'll admit that it always warms my heart when Yuri is so willing to defend me, especially after what I put him through. That's why when it came down to it I was prepared to deal with the situation myself once Ash was well enough to travel again. And perhaps I should have done that in the first place instead of giving into my selfish desire to see Yuri again. Despite my new...motives for her I wasn't entirely heartless and sincerely wanted to help at least to some degree.

Once Yuri finished speaking with his hot-blooded fiancé and returned to the table, I folded my hands under my chin and concluded, "At any rate, at least now we know one part of what we're dealing with. I do apologize for the trouble that I've caused. That was never my intention. So now that I have a better understanding of Ash's predicament, once she feels up to it, we'll return to Small Shimaron and I will continue with the investigation myself. This was my problem to begin with."

"Hold on!" Yuri exclaimed, startling me slightly with how suddenly he cried out. "I thought we were going to send her back home using the usual method! Wasn't that the whole idea of you bringing her all the way here?"

Smiling to myself because of Yuri's lingering air of naiveté I promptly replied, "Originally, yes. It seemed like a perfectly reasonable request at the time since that transportation technique is not as widely used in other countries. Except for in extremely rare cases like this one where someone skilled in those arts was able to replicate that skill to use for their own means. But need I remind you that these former White Crows clearly are working for someone powerful enough to send them over to the unknown land she lives in to retrieve Ash and bring her here. So it stands to reason that they will probably try to do that again if we carelessly send her back the same way without resolving this problem first. The mercenary that they hired even said as much because he was actually sent here as a decoy so that Ash would expose the power buried inside of her so that they'll be able to intercept any attempt she makes to travel back home. Now do you understand Yuri? They'll be watching our every move looking for a chance to capture her."

"Yeah," he nodded, looking a little dejected. "I understand. That doesn't mean I like it though. I don't really know Ash all that well since we just met but I agree with what Gretta was saying. She's not a bad person. And I'd still like to help her if we can, even if we have to do what we can from the sidelines this time. But you know-" Yuri's eyes brightened as he turned to his friends and his adopted daughter and said, "-right now, I think the best thing we can do for Ash is let her know that she's not in this alone. I'm sure she's feeling even more confused now that it turns out her magical abilities are real. I'd be freaking out too. In fact, I sorta DID freak out the first time I encountered anything magical. It'd probably be just like if you suddenly saw a car driving down the road with no horse. It's seem out of place. That's why we need to show her that she's not as weird as she thinks she is, at least not over here. That'll help out a lot...I hope."


	9. Rekindled

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

* * *

Chapter 9: Rekindled Flame

* * *

Bedroom: Ash's POV

"Please bear with me just a bit little longer," Geisila told me nonchalantly, placing one of her glowing hands over my temple. "You're doing great Ash."

It didn't feel like I was doing so _'great'_ in my opinion. But since she was doing her best to help me feel better I mustered a weak smile while trying with some difficulty to keep my eyes open. I felt miserable. All I wanted to do was go to sleep but the doctor, Geisila, told me in no uncertain terms that I needed to stay awake until she was finished.

Searching for something to talk about with my newly-found language skills, I asked her, "That little girl, Gretta, is she ok?"

"She's fine. Lady Celli is looking after her right now so don't worry," she smiled back reassuringly.

Relaxing my shoulders slightly, I sighed, "That's a relief."

Withdrawing her hand briefly from my head, Geisila took a deep breath as she gathered her thoughts. My guess was that she was looking for a simpler way to explain what was happening to me in terms I would understand. The same way I guess most doctors do, regardless of what world they come from. Although in my case, it wasn't a medical condition that she needed to explain, but a mythological one.

Folding her hands neatly in her lap, Geisila explained to me, "Ash, I think it is safe to assume by now that your powers -which you actively displayed today- along the memories of our language that resides in your soul were both sealed away intentionally. Someone with considerable skills must have tried very hard to conceal your power to the point where even you were unaware of them until recently. From what I can tell, this particular type of seal is designed to break in the event of your life being put in harm's way. This isn't the way things happen normally. The memories that were left behind by those who came before you are usually wiped clean so that they won't interfere with your present life. The only two people I know that are exempt to this rule are His Majesty King Yuri and His Eminence. I've never met another person with the memories from their past life still intact. It's definitely strange…"

I blinked and couldn't keep the emotion out of my voice as I scoffed, "Past life? What the heck are you talking about? Look, I've accepted a lot of the weirdness that's happened to me in the last few days, but that's a stretch even for me to take seriously. I'm just a normal teenager with one already screwed up life I'm trying to keep from falling apart on me. I don't think I can handle it if someone else's is dropped in my lap, ok? Just...tell me I'm not going to start acting like someone else now too because my brain is broken. Please."

Looking surprised by my emotional outburst, Geisila continued softly, "You're right. I could be wrong about that last part but I just can't think of another way to explain why you can suddenly speak our language so fluently. Especially since you've never been to this world before according to Conrart."

"I don't know what it means either. And I just don't believe in past lives. We're only supposed to be given one life to live. That's why it's considered so precious. That's why it's important not to waste a single moment of it," I said with a hint of bitterness in my voice that I didn't mean to let slip. "It feels like that's all I've been doing the last seventeen years though, wasting it by feeling so lost all the time…"

"Don't say that," Geisila said as she smiled meaningfully at me. "You're doing the best you can under these extenuating circumstances. And I'm sorry if I overwhelmed you with my observations. The point of the matter is that right now your body is under a lot of strain because of the seal on your powers and memories trying to reassert itself over you despite being designed to have broken already. If this continues it could be very hazardous to your health. So we need to find a way to break it before your condition worsens. I've already arranged to bring you to the Tomb of the Great One to meet with the High Priestess Lady Ulrike who with any luck will be able to remove the seal safely from your subconscious."

Again, I had no idea what she was talking about but I nodded anyway. After that Geisila stood up and told me that I should rest for a while while she reported back to the others. Before she left though I asked Geisila to pass on my thanks to Conrad for carrying me here and to tell Gretta that I was happy that she was ok. Geisila gave me a small nod and then told me to drink the medicine on the desk beside me. She said it was to help me sleep.

Picking up the small bottle I popped it open and braced myself for how bitter it would probably taste. I was surprised though when the medicine tasted more like some kind of mint flavor with a slight metallic aftertaste. The mint was probably added to give it any flavor at all.

After replacing the bottle on the desk I closed my eyes and waited for sleep to envelope me. Hoping for a dreamless sleep where I wouldn't have to worry about anything. At least for a little while. My heart felt unbearably heavy and I didn't know what to think anymore. So I hoped that I wouldn't have to think about anything at all while I was sleeping, and in that way the weight of it all that I felt was crushing me would be lifted away just long enough to take back control of the crazy situation I was in.

* * *

I drowsily opened my eyes at the sound of someone knocking on my door. I was still sleepy so my voice was a little hoarse when I told them they could come in. At first I thought Geisila had come back but when my vision cleared up I realized that it was Berias. Only this time, Sara wasn't with him which surprised me since they always seemed to be together.

"Hi Berias," I smiled unsurely. "What brings you-" unable to contain myself though, I snorted with laughter, "-sorry, this is still kinda weird to me. In my head I still think I'm using English when actually, the words coming out of my mouth aren't. If only learning German or French was this easy. I'd definitely get better grades in class if that were the case."

Raising an eyebrow but not looking the least bit amused at the reference, Berias formally informed me, "His Highness King Saralegui sent me here to apologize for being negligent in his duty to protect you. He says that he'd like to make it up to you by providing you with new clothes and has ordered me to act as your personal guard until we are certain that there won't be another kidnapping attempt."

"Wha-?" I blinked rapidly, utterly bewildered by this unexpected offer. "Why is he apologizing to me? It's not like its his fault I was attacked. If anyone needs to apologize, it's me."

"How so?" he asked me curiously.

Looking down at my hand and clenching my fist, I continued. "I'm not stupid. I know how dangerous fire can be. That's why I remember focusing all of the energy spilling out of me into that guy's sword so that it wouldn't go out of control. But if I hadn't controlled my urge to lash out with all of that power then there's no doubt in my mind that everyone, not just Gretta, could have gotten seriously hurt. So you can tell Sara thanks for the kind offer but, it just wouldn't feel right accepting it when I put everyone at risk because I had no idea that I was-" then as I started to feel a lump form in my throat, I choked, "-actually, I don't know what I am anymore. Am I even human?"

"If I may be so bold," Berias began before kneeling at my bedside and looking up at me, "His Majesty and I both agree that you showed extraordinary self-control in using your abilities. And even under the best circumstances that is a difficult thing to do. You should be proud of yourself for such a feat. Even King Yuri, with all his power, has some level of difficulty controlling himself at times. That is why for as long as you are with us, it is our sincerest wish that you allow us to help you through this difficult time. At least until it is safe for you to return to your own country. So please, do not think of his offer as an act of charity, but rather as thanks for saving the life of his valued ally's daughter through your bravery."

I sighed in exasperation. "I'm not sure if I actually believe any of that but if you're going to be that insistent then I guess it's ok to accept. If you wouldn't mind, please tell him can go after this whole _'unsealing'_ business is over with."

* * *

Once Geisila returned, we quickly made our way over to a place called _'The Tomb of the Great One.'_ When I asked her what it was she explained that it was a temple of sorts that housed the spirit of the man who founded their country over four thousand years ago with the help of several others from various noble families. There were ten in total, but four of them in particular played a pivotal role in helping him build this Kingdom…

The tomb itself was now home to the shrine maidens who serve under the Oracle we were on our way to see that watches over the Kingdom and prays to the spirit of their founder for his guidance and wisdom. Supposedly, she was the only one who could hear his voice unless he decided to grace someone personally in their dreams. Kinda creepy if you ask me. Still, if that's what they believed than who was I to question it? Besides I was starting to believe that just about anything was possible in this world.

As soon as the carriage arrived I felt a thrill of electricity run up my spine. I could already sense the presence of someone waiting for me in there; someone old and powerful. At first I shied away from it until another presence brushed against the back of my mind to soothe my growing fears and reservations about being there. This feeling of sensing other people with powers was definitely going to take some getting used to because it was hard to keep my thoughts focused on what was in front of me when my mind was extending itself much further out.

"Are you feeling alright Ash?" Geisila asked with concern when I wobbly stepped out of the carriage behind her. "You look pale."

Waving her off, I replied, "I'm fine. Just a little dizzy, that's all. It's this place-" looking up at the cold stone walls towering before us I admitted, "-it doesn't seem like a bad place but there's something here that makes me feel…uneasy. I'm really not sure why. So let's hurry and get this over with because I'm not sure how much longer I can handle this."

With a nod she took me by the elbow and we slowly walked inside the front gates. We were greeted by some female guards that-for whatever reason-sort of reminded me of Valkyries from Norse mythology. They ushered us inside and then one of them left to inform the shrine maidens that we had arrived. Not long after, she returned with three shrine maidens who were going to help me prepare for the ceremony that Lady Ulrike was going to perform to try and properly unlock the memories inside my spirit and get my new powers under control.

They wore simple white robes with classic harem-style pants and these odd golden balls tied to the ends of their hair. Some of them had strange colored hair too, like burgundy, lavender, blue, and green. It made me wonder whether or not it was dyed or their natural color. Then again, Berias and Geisila had green hair too...

Honestly though I was just picking at straws to get my mind off the tightness in my chest and the painful thump of my heart against it. To tell the truth, I was petrified. The idea of someone using their power to touch my soul felt very invasive and I wasn't looking forward to the experience. Because I was afraid of what I would learn about myself afterwards.

* * *

"This ceremony hasn't been performed for a long time according to the tomb's records," one of the shrine maidens explained while helping me get dressed in the purification robes I was supposed to wear. "There's no need to worry though. We've already studied the procedure and it's similar to most of the rites that we already perform in service to the Great One. First we'll cleanse your body in sanctified water and then pray along with the high priestess Lady Ulrike in order to reveal the power that is currently restraining your natural abilities. Once that is done I'm sure you'll feel much better."

Turning to face her, I asked nervously, "There isn't going to be any mind-reading is there?"

Hearing that, the other girls couldn't help but giggle and one of the other priestesses answered with a kind smile, "Of course not. Only the high priestess can sense the radiance of certain souls, but that certainly doesn't include seeing into the minds of others. It is only by the Will of the Great One that she can influence the memories of someone's soul. But that is a rite reserved for the souls chosen to be the Demon King or Queen of the time. This ceremony is similar but your memories shouldn't be effected, just the seal that was placed over the ones from your previous life will be removed so that your powers don't overwhelm you. You shouldn't remember anything you choose not to though."

Feeling relieved to hear that I thanked her and then fell silent again.

It was still a surreal feeling even doing this at all but if it would help to ease this awful feeling of being on the edge of losing all control of myself then I was willing to at least give it a shot. I didn't know what else to expect but after thinking back on everyone's words of encouragement, including what Berias said, it gave me the courage I needed to see this through. And once this was over I planned to show them just how much those words meant to me.


	10. From the Ashes

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

* * *

Chapter 10: From the Ashes

 _(Chapter inspired by Come Clean by Hillary Duff)_

* * *

Tomb of the Great One: Ash's POV

It almost seemed like a baptism when the priestesses doused me in water. I felt refreshed as a renewed sense of calm washed over me, which was something I desperately needed. And once that part was over I was escorted down to the main chamber where Lady Ulrike was waiting for us, the water droplets in my hair shimmering like diamonds or dew drops in the morning sun.

Even though this place was called a _'tomb'_ it was very well kept and seemed more like a temple after all. The place definitely had a much warmer atmosphere now that I was more relaxed, not to mention less wound up about this whole ceremony thing. Whereas before I was so apprehensive about it that my chest felt like it was in a vice…

I just couldn't figure out why I suddenly started feeling that way. It seemed like I was handling things pretty well given all the crazy things that've happened to me and everything seemed so out of control that it was too much to handle all by myself. That's when the rest of my courage finally gave out to let the fear I felt take hold.

But since Sara and his friends were doing everything they could to help me I had to wonder, when it came down to it, is there was anything I can do for them? Two of them were Kings in their own right and I was just some girl who was in over her head with powers that could either be useful or dangerous. That's what we were hopefully about to find out about my power. If I could control it, or if I was like a bomb about to go off. Once I knew at least that much about myself I was sure that I would be able to decide what was best for all of us.

I'd been so wrapped up in my own thoughts that I didn't notice we were inside the central chamber already. A small gasp of awe escaped my lips when I saw the water gently cascading down the walls from the pool above us with a clear glass surface. We could see all the way up to the sky overhead between the lilies floating in the water. The chamber was round with a golden emblem at the end of the red carpet beneath our feet and a few steps that led up to what looked like three ordinary wooden boxes. And that's where Lady Ulrike was waiting, smiling softly at us from the far end of the room.

* * *

"Welcome Lady Ashlynn," she bowed politely in front of me, "It's a pleasure to finally meet you in person. His Eminence told me a lot about you."

I was at a bit of a loss for words when I finally saw her up close, but I bowed back in return to hide my obvious bewilderment. For a _'lady'_ she only looked around nine or maybe twelve years old at most with long silver hair trailing behind her and these big violet colored eyes. Even Ulrike's voice was childish.

Shaking myself, I admitted, "I'm sorry if I was staring earlier. You're not quite what I was expecting."

Taking my hands into hers, Ulrike smiled at me. "That's alright, I don't mind at all."

"So what am I supposed to do now?" I asked her. "Am I supposed to pray along with you and the other priestesses?"

Ulrike shook her head. "No, all you have to do is kneel so I can place my hands over you and I will begin the ceremony to safely awaken the sealed portion of your spirit. During that time, you may feel some discomfort but do not be alarmed, it's a perfectly normal reaction to what we're attempting. Now before we begin are there any other questions?"

Biting my lip, I finally asked the question that had been on my mind ever since they told me who _'The Great One'_ was. "Listen, about this Great One of yours, do you believe he's really here?"

Her eyes widened in surprise. "What makes you say that?"

Looking up at the emblem behind her, I continued, "I'm still getting used to sensing other people around me with power but when I came here I felt something different. The presence belongs to a powerful person yet at the same time it feels, translucent for lack of a better word. Like they're there and yet a part of a different space than ours. And now that I've met you I know it isn't you I felt. So maybe, his spirit really is here…"

"Cat's out of the bag hmm?" said an unexpected voice from somewhere behind Ulrike.

Jerking back, I looked back down and saw a man sitting on top of the box on the far left of us. "Where the heck did he come from?!" I gasped, feeling my heart pounding a mile a minute.

Ulrike calmly turned to the stranger and frowned, "Please Your Majesty, now is not the time for your games. This girl is-"

Smirking, the man shrugged his shoulders and said, "I couldn't help myself. It's not every day I get to meet someone as interesting as this one. After all, she has little to no experience with magic and yet it was strong enough to sense me even in this state. Don't mind me. I'd just like to see what'll happen when you unlock her full potential."

"You're-" I began once my heart calmed down a little, "Are you the one we were just talking about?"

"In the flesh. Well, so to speak anyway," He smiled mischievously. "I am sorry that I startled you but your soul intrigues me. It has ever since we first felt it."

I raised an eyebrow and crossed my arms. "So you _are_ dead. Great. Now I can see dead people. What's next? X-ray vision?"

The Great One or whoever he was didn't seem all that amused with my comment and walked over to me, lifting my chin up to face him. "Do I really seem like a ghost to you…?"

I froze. He was touching me! How was that possible? That's when I felt it, the scorching heat of my power rising up from within me out of fear. To stop it, I bravely grabbed his hand and pulled it away from my face and started glaring at him as I told him haughtily, "Honestly, I don't care who or what you are right now. Even if you are their almighty Great One you're not my god so don't think for one second that you can just do what you want around me. Got it?"

After that, he unexpectedly started to laugh and gave me a sincere smile as he turned to his High Priestess and said, "I like her. She's got spunk and a fiery spirit. I believe she will make a wonderful addition to Yuri's list of allies. Therefore, she has my blessing. You may continue with the ceremony now."

Lady Ulrike bowed, "Thank you Your Majesty."

No sooner had she raised her head then he was gone again and I was left looking like an idiot for bad-mouthing the guy the people of this country worshiped. My cheeks turned bright red and I covered my face with both hands. I'd never felt so humiliated in my entire life! I just hoped that the priestesses would forgive me for being so rude to him right in front of everyone.

Just then, I heard Ulrike's voice again. "Lady Ashlynn?"

I peered at her from between my fingers, "Y-yeah?"

"Don't worry too much about him. The Great One is a well-known prankster but he means well. His will has led this country for over four thousand years, and we all have faith in him. Until about a year ago now, he was suffering greatly for the sake of this country and even the entire world all alone until King Yuri freed him from his pain. Now he has left the country in King Yuri's care and visits his tomb from time to time to see how things are progressing. That's why he comes off as a little childish. Because now that his spirit is free The Great One likes to involve himself with only the matters he finds _'interesting.'_ "

"Oh," I lowered my hands. "I guess that makes sense. It was still weird to see an actual ghost right in front of me."

"I'm sure it was," She smiled before becoming serious again. "Are you ready for the ceremony now? It's getting late and I'm sure the others must be very worried about you."

As if suddenly remembering about the shopping trip I promised Sara we'd go on, I nodded and knelt in front of Lady Ulrike as the other priestesses formed a circle around us. Then, I looked up into her eyes and with determination I answered, "I'm ready. Let's do this."

* * *

Kneeling in front of Lady Ulrike I closed my eyes, bracing myself for whatever I was about to feel. A small part of me was still unsure, but I thought I was ready to face it regardless. And so as I sat there the air around my body started to vibrate when the priestesses began to channel their power along with Ulrike's into me. The sensation was like floating in warm water, where you can feel it moving around you and touching the surface of your skin.

It wasn't long though before I felt another sudden burst of energy ripple through me. I shifted uncomfortably but tried to remain still like she told me to. Then it happened again, only this time something else happened too. I saw a vision of a mansion wreathed in flames and heard the sound of metal scrapping against metal as swords met in midair with one another. And there was a man who tore himself away from the conflict carrying a tiny bundle in his arms. A small hand reached out from it, tugging at the hem of his hood as frightened tears fell from the child's eyes and their wails fell upon deaf ears.

The figure turned only briefly to check whether or not he'd been followed before darting further down the path into the darkness. There was a flash of light, and then my eyes snapped open. I knew that man from somewhere. Was he the man who died saving me as a baby? I wanted to know. I had to know!

After another influx, I clenched my eyes shut and saw another vision of the same man only now he was bleeding freely from a stab wound in his abdomen and there were several bodies on the ground at his feet. One of them was still alive though until the figure noticed him and slashed his throat without a second thought. After that he came over to where he managed to hide me under the roots of an upturned tree. He checked to see if I was alright and brushed away some stray dirt from my face, smiling in relief.

"It isn't far now. Soon you'll be safe, I promise," the man said before grimacing as the bleeding grew steadily worse. "Damn, I should have known getting this far away was too easy. I thought for sure I had lost them days ago. But clearly, they must still be able to sense your power even from a distance…"

Laying the child down on a bed of grass he placed his hands on her brow and closed his eyes, drawing on the last reserves of his strength. However, just when he was about to complete the spell to conceal my presence from the men chasing us, something miraculous happened. Grabbing his hand with both of mine I started to giggle as my hair turned gold and I started to glow brightly. He looked shocked as the light enveloped us both, leaving absolutely no trace behind.

At that moment everything came rushing out of me at once. But I couldn't tell if it was a part of the vision I was having or actually happening to me right then. All I knew was that whatever had been holding me back had been stripped away. I felt more powerful and alive then I ever felt before, as if I'd finally woken up from a long dream and was only just now fully aware of myself…

Just as I was starting to settle back to my normal self again, something went horribly wrong. My mind went completely blank and suddenly it was like I was myself, but also someone else, detached. It was almost as if a much deeper part of me was taking over my consciousness. And I was helpless to stop it.


	11. Smoldering Emotions

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

* * *

Chapter 11: Smoldering Emotions

* * *

Covenant Castle: Conrad's POV

We were discussing what was to be done about Ash's situation when a pillar of fire descended from the sky directly above the Tomb of the Great One. Seeing this we all rushed towards the nearest window to see what was happening. The pillar dissipated soon after but we could tell that something must have gone differently than planned during the ceremony. It wouldn't be the first time.

Coming to the same conclusion after exchanging looks with one another, Gwendal was quick to mobilize a small unit of soldiers to accompany us to the Tomb to further access the situation. We also sent someone to inform King Saralegui that something was amiss since he was writing a letter to organize a private investigation of the White Crows on Ash's behalf. Although he may have already seen the pillar of fire from the window of his chamber as well for all we knew. As for myself, as soon as I called for Yosak we joined Gwendal and the platoon of soldier's heading to the Tomb along with Yuri, Wolfram, and His Eminence.

"The enemy may have discovered her location after our attempt to unseal her latent abilities. So I agree that we should be prepared if they've already infiltrated the Tomb," His Eminence agreed when I told him my theory. "I sense a strong presence coming from there that doesn't belong to the Great One or Lady Ulrike. So I can only assume it's Ash's power I'm feeling."

Yuri nodded. "Yeah, I feel it too. And that's why we need to hurry. Ugh! Where is Sara already?"

"He's on his way," I assured Yuri and right on cue, Saralegui and Berias appeared in the doorway. And after exchanging a few words with them we left the castle.

* * *

We rode to the Tomb of the Great One as fast as we could. And those of us armed with swords promptly drew them as soon as we saw the priestesses rushing to get away from the main chamber. Meanwhile the female soldiers readied their spears and braced themselves. Unsure of what lay beyond the main doors to the central chamber...

"Where's Lady Ulrike? Don't tell me she's stuck in there-" His Eminence asked, clearly already guessing the answer.

"Oh Your Eminence, please, you have to save Lady Ulrike!" one priestess pleaded earnestly. "She's trapped in there along with the other priestesses who were performing the ceremony! And that girl…I think that girl is-!?"

Then the chamber doors suddenly boomed open and as per usual my first instinct was to protect Yuri by dashing in front of him. The next thing I knew my face was assaulted by a blast of hot air. It wasn't hot enough to cause burns from this distance but even then I found the heat sweltering as it billowed past us. After making sure everyone else was alright, I looked up and saw Ash standing at the far end of the chamber, a whirlwind of fire spiraling around her. Keeping away anyone who dared to approach by spiraling out further before closing in on Ash again.

"Your Highness, are you unharmed?" I asked him one more time just to be sure.

Yuri nodded, "Yeah but what was up with that heatwave? Did Ash-"

"Do not approach me," Ash warned us in a calm regal tone when she heard Yuri mention her name, her hair flying all around her face and turning gold as she raised her arms up to the wall of fire surrounding her as if beckoning it into her embrace.

The whirlwind of fire then suddenly stopped moving, transforming itself into some sort of enormous golden fire bird. It had the long elegant neck and head of a swan but the enormous wings and talons of an eagle with a long flowing tail that fanned out behind it like a peacock, though these feathers looked much softer and fluttered with each flap of its wings like a flickering fire.

"It has been far too long since I last manifested myself in this form. I thank you for breaking the seal over me. Because now I can finally help my current incarnation, Ashlynn, reestablish the pact we made long ago with this solitary spirit. One that I feared had forgotten me due to our...unexpected absence from this world. Though it would appear my concerns were unfounded. O ancient sovereign of fire from the valleys of the sun itself, let us now rekindle our bond. Help me to burn away the last remnants of this earthly power which has unjustly kept us apart." She clasped her hands to her chest as though praying and upon hearing the spirit's voice or perhaps feeling it's thoughts said aloud, "Yes, I know. The road before her will be fraught with danger, but I believe that these kind people can help. Otherwise I would never have led her to them. I won't let her lose anything else to the greed of others who know the truth about us. That there can only ever be one…"

Letting out a strangely beautiful cry, the spirit returned to its pure fiery form before merging itself within Ash, who collapsed soon after. Once the presence was gone Ash's appearance returned to normal and we were able to assist the other fallen priestesses. Gunter of course quickly helped Ulrike to her feet first while the rest of us helped the other priestesses.

As for Ash, it was Saralegui who came to her side first to see if she was alright. And to my surprise he wore a strange expression unlike the others I'd seen the young king wear before. Usually Saralegui wore a calm and collected mask, hiding the secretive glint in his eyes behind those tinted shades. This time however, his expression was openly fascinated while at the same time unsure. And I was sure he was asking the same question we were all thinking. Her words just now, that spirit, what did it all mean?

* * *

Unknown Location: ? POV

And there it was at last, her star once again shining brightly like a beacon in the darkness. Before it was but a small flicker of light, a smoldering flame. But now thanks to those fools I could see her soul's radiance as bright as day and could pin point exactly where Ashlynn was. I'd already sent a few agents to retrieve Ashlynn in that other world but they only managed to bring her half-way. This angered me greatly. Still, at least the child was back in our world.

"And what of the man we sent into the Demon King's Castle?" I asked the White Crow spy from my seat while looking only into the crystal orb set on my desk.

The spy bowed, "As you predicted he cracked under the pressure and told them where the village is. Since we only gave him the bare minimum with information regarding the target, they remain should remain oblivious as to why we are actually after her. With any luck they will bring her there with them in search of clues. We've prepared everything as you instructed in addition to the backup plan. They'll expect us to infiltrate the castle now that her power has been unsealed-"

Smirking, I cut him off and concluded, "-and as soon as she realizes that they intend to put themselves in danger for her sake, Ashlynn will attempt to use her power to remove herself from the castle to spare them the trouble. That is when we will reroute her here and capture her. This however, they will also expect and take measures to prevent. From what I know of this girl she is resourceful so I have faith that she will find another way to slip out from under their wing as it were. That is why I want your best agents watching Ashlynn at all times. Do not wear your usual attire unless you intend to lure them away because as I recall you already have history with Demon King, correct?"

Swallowing hard, he replied, "Y-yes, our former leader Janis he led us into several encounter's with him, including one where we captured his older brother."

Catching my interest with this remark, I offered the spy a seat and asked, "Older brother you say? Do tell…"

* * *

Covenant Castle: Ash's POV

After waking up in Sara's arms and being told that I summoned some kind of fire spirit during my blackout, my anxiety became fully apparent to everyone. I was at my limit emotionally. And I was completely overwhelmed. And worse, I was scared of what could have happened if this other me didn't know what she was doing when she called that…thing to her. Again, I could have hurt a lot of people today.

As if I didn't feel like a stranger to myself already but now there was literally a whole other side to myself that I didn't know anything about. That's why when we headed back to the castle I withdrew from everyone. I didn't know what to say to them let alone what to feel. So the only thing I could manage was an apology before reserving the rest of my energy to keep myself from crying my eyes out.

The first thing I wanted to do once we set foot back at the castle gates was hole myself up in my room when before I could blink, a pair of strong yet slender arms wrapped themselves around me and a cheerful voice filled my ears. "My dear, I heard all about the ceremony! Are you alright sweetie? Oh you must be exhausted! How about a nice relaxing bath with the girls hmm?"

"I, um…" at a loss for words I glanced back to the others in a silent plea for help. "What?"

Just then though, a smaller hand took mine and I looked down to see Gretta peering up at me with her adorable round eyes. "Please? I really want to thank you for saving me before and Lady Celli said you might like a rose bath! I picked the flowers myself."

 _'Holy crap this woman is strong!'_ I thought as I tried to wriggle out of her reach. "Thank you, Gretta. That's really sweet but, I don't think that's such a good idea right now. I'm really tired and…I could've hurt those priestesses so I don't feel up to being around anyone right now."

"Nonsense! Your power is perfectly stable now and no one blames you for that. Something unexpected happen as a result of the ceremony, yes, but it wasn't on purpose and if nothing else at least it worked. Why King Yuri was out cold for three days when he first used magic yet you've already used it without an elemental pact twice and only fainted for a few hours at most. You should be very proud of yourself for having that much control from the very start," Lady Celli winked, hugging me tighter. "Why, not even dear Wolfy can direct his fire magic as precisely as you did when that bad man took little Gretta hostage."

"Wolfy?" I snickered, unable to help myself. "You mean Wolfram right?"

"Mother! Don't go telling her that! I'll have you know I am a master fire user now thank you very much!" Wolfram huffed, strolling past us with bright red cheeks.

"I think that's a great idea mother," Conrad smiled, skillfully prying his mother off of me so I could breathe again. "Ash, we all know how hard this must be for you but being depressed about it won't help. She's right. The important thing is that no one was injured that badly. A few burns and bruises from the initial outburst of magic can easily be taken care of. Besides, despite the last part of the ceremony the end result is that you seem to be doing better. So I take it the ringing has stopped and you can understand our words fluently now right?"

With a sigh I nodded, "That's true I guess. Still I just feel bad about what happened. And I'd feel even worse being treated to something that sounds so…fancy rather than make up for the trouble I caused. Do you know what I mean?"

"We do. But a question if I may," still smiling warmly Conrad asked, "This may sound strange coming from me, however, in my experience when you have people you can count on sometimes it's better to lean on them once in a while. Whether for comfort or support. So why are you so afraid to rely on us when we're trying to help you cope with this? Why to you keep holding us at arm's length?"

Stunned, I took a deep breath and crossed my arms before answering truthfully, averting my gaze, "Because, it's usually the moment I start to depend on someone that they…get rid of me. I learned early on to take care of myself because I figure that in the end, that's all I'm left with. It's not that I'm ungrateful. Far from it. But let's face it, if it wasn't for those creeps who came after me, and these stupid powers, you'd have sent me back home already, right? Out of sight, out of mind. Like with all the other people I've met since the day I was put into the system; you're only doing this out of an obligation or pity because I'm alone. Well I'm sick of it. I don't need your pity, I don't want it. So just, leave me alone for a little bit, ok? I need time to think…" glancing up over at Sara, I added, "And thank you for offering to get me some new clothes Sara but I'm just not up for going shopping. I'm sorry. I'm…sorry for everything. Maybe...it would have been better if I just drowned after all."

And with that, I turned and made my way inside with a stiff upper lip. I refused to cry anymore in front of them. The problem was with me and they didn't do anything wrong. I was at my limit emotionally. Figures that I was sent to stay with my final foster parents because of stress, only to end up feeling it again in a place more distant than my last _'home…'_


	12. Moments of Sincerity

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

* * *

Chapter 12: Moments of Sincerity

* * *

Covenant Castle: Ash's POV

"Geez, why do I always have to be like this?" I asked myself with a dejected sigh as soon as I was far enough away from the others to be well out of earshot. "It's just that, I've seen that look so many times and it always leads to the same thing. I don't want to be-"

"Hey, are you ok?" ask an unexpectedly close voice from right behind me.

Startled, I whirled around, heart pounding. Then feeling embarrassed and flustered, I stared down at my feet and stammered, "S-sorry about that. I guess I'm still a little bit jumpy…"

When I looked up, I realized that I was talking to Yuri's older brother, Shori. I'd seen him around a few times but honestly with all the craziness going on it was hard to remember who everyone was sometimes. Besides, just before I left for the Tomb I heard that Shori wanted to talk to the guy who took Gretta hostage about something personal. Since then I hadn't seen much of him around until just now.

I was even more surprised when he suddenly took me by the shoulder and said, "Don't worry about it. You have every right to be on edge given everything that's happened the last few days. It's a lot to take in."

"You're telling me…" I laughed in a hollow voice. "But come on, we both know that I'm the one causing all the drama around here at the moment, so I should be the one apologizing. I made such a mess of things."

Raising an eyebrow and adjusting his glasses, Shori replied. "I heard about what happened at the Tomb, but you have to know that no one else expected it either otherwise we would have been more careful. It's not your fault. At any rate, I'm glad I ran into you actually. I wanted to tell you something. Mind if we sit down somewhere for a bit?"

Looking down the hall behind him a bit unsurely to make sure we were alone, I nodded. "Ok. I hope you're right about it not taking long though because to tell you the truth I was heading back to my room to be alone."

"This won't take long," he promised, briefly following my gaze back behind us and then showing me over to the nearest bench.

Once we both sat down, Shori turned and looked at me in all seriousness before briefly summarizing his own experiences since coming to this other world; such as when he was dealing with his magic for the first time, and the problems he caused because of his ignorance about the culture of this land. Shori told me about his most recent misadventures that happened when he was trying to help his younger brother and tricked Yuri into bringing him along, only to end up getting them both mixed up with a very dangerous group of people.

I started to zone out at some point during Shori's story when what he said at the very end of it caught me by surprise. After that I jerked back to full alertness, now listening more intently to his words. "Wait a second, so you know who those cloaked creepers are?"

He blinked in surprise, "Huh? Didn't Yuri or one of his friends already tell you about them?"

I shook my head. "They probably wanted to make sure my magical-medical condition was taken care of first or thought it'd be dangerous to know too much. Who knows…" I sighed and rested my chin in the palms of both hands. "I can definitely relate to how you felt being left out of the loop back then, figures I'd get the same treatment like always. Grownups are all alike, even in a different world it seems. Keeping secrets and thinking we don't grasp what's going on. I'm not a child anymore."

Putting a supportive hand on my shoulder again, Shori continued, "Don't be like that. I think we both know that going back to Earth right now would only put your foster parents in danger and that's the last thing we want. As long as you're here in this world, as crazy as this may sound, they're actually a lot safer. So are you. If the White Crows became desperate enough to travel there again just to capture you there's no telling what they might resort to next time. That's why you're better off sticking around here where we can deal with them on our terms and not worry about involving your foster parents who have no idea what's going on. But then again, that's no excuse to keep you in the dark about these guys since you've faced them twice already. So, what do you say we go back and tell off my brother? We can figure out where to go from there and you won't have to worry about it all alone in your room."

Managing a small smile, I nodded. "Alright, you convinced me. And thanks for the pep-talk too."

* * *

It was nice to finally get some straightforward answers about what was going on when we went back together to see his brother. Although Shori ended up getting an earful himself for telling me about the White Crow's without them. Turns out that they were planning on telling me all along, but I never give them the chance before storming off. I felt like an idiot and apologized for letting my insecurities get the better of me but they just smiled and said it wasn't a big deal.

"It's alright, really, when you told us how you felt Ash it made me realize that you've been keeping a lot bottled up inside because you didn't want us to worry. Sort of like someone else I know," Conrad winked at Yuri who just rolled his eyes at him but flashed a small smile at me. "I shouldn't have put you on the spot like that, so I am also at fault for speaking out of turn. I just wanted to assure you we're going to help you get through this. Whether the White Crows were involved or not we'd help you against these men regardless."

"Thanks Conrad," I smiled back in his direction, readjusting myself in my chair. "Ok so if I'm understanding this right, there's this secret society called the White Crows that you believed up until recently had been completely wiped out. Then you found out that some of them survived and now they have a new employer. On top of that, this new employer is most likely the one behind sending those first three guys after me on Earth and the mercenary that's locked up in the dungeon right now. And the mercenary's real intention wasn't even to capture me necessarily but to trick me into using magic so they can track my every move from now on? Is that about it?"

"More or less," Gwendal nodded.

"Hmm, isn't there any way to…block the signal? You know, hide my magic again like before?" I asked him, although I was pretty sure I already knew the answer.

Crossing his arms, Gwendal continued. "In theory, yes. However, we're still not sure exactly how your magic works since from what we've seen its fundamentally different from ours. And frankly after that fiasco during the ceremony to stabilize it I'd rather not risk causing another explosive reaction. What we need to do now is gather more information. We've already interrogated the mercenary to see how much he knows about you and who he works for. But the person who hired him was very careful not provide them with much information about you as the target other than what was essential when they gave him his assignment. All we know is that supposedly the two of them met in an abandoned village called Cyrset bordering Caloria and Small Shimaron. That seems to be our best lead at the moment. However, it could also be a trap."

"Then what better way to lure them out?" Sara commented. "In my experience, one of the best places to lay a trap of your own is right in the middle of where they least expect to be caught off guard themselves because they think they're the ones in power. And I believe my troops will be more than adequate protection for Ash during our investigation of this village. I'm sure I could even convince Lady Flynn to assist us as well since her late husband often visited that village and knew the area well, he's sure to have told her about it."

"Hold on Sara. Don't you think that's a bit much? Having a bunch of armed soldiers wondering all over the place in broad daylight? What if we scare them off before we find out anything useful? Call me crazy but even if they stayed further back from us, these White Crow people sound like they could get the jump on us even then."

Smiling, Sara shook his head and turned to me, "I know what I'm doing Ash, trust me. As a King, it is my royal duty to remove potential threats to Small Shimaron and its people. We aren't sure yet what their new leader is after or what your role is in their plans that's so important but it's clear from the previous two attacks on you that they're willing to threaten lives or even kill to get what they want. What we do know for certain is that White Crows are involved. Yuri has dealt with them before and know that they're very dangerous. They want you for a reason, Ash, and as I pointed out before we've already seen how far they are willing to go to obtain your power. You can't expect me to leave such a valuable person as yourself unprotected, can you?"

"Valuable huh?" I snickered. "Ah, I see how it is. I just went from zero to hero because I almost set that shrine on fire, yay me…"

Seeing the doubt in my eyes, Yuri exclaimed, "Ash, I'm sure that's not what he meant-"

Plopping my forehead on the table with a dull thud I groaned, "Ugh I'm sorry guys, that was really rude now that I think about it. My brain just isn't working properly anymore with all this new stuff to think about now. I really should have gone off to enjoy that rose bath with Gretta after all. Maybe then I wouldn't be so grumpy and tense."

"I'm sure they'd be more than happy to do it again once you're up for it," Conrad chuckled. "Mother wouldn't want miss the chance to talk about her quest for free love with someone new."

For some reason, this made me blush when I took the entirely wrong meaning to those words and laughed. "I guess she'll learn the hard way that I'm no good at girl talk next time then."

* * *

Covenant Castle: Sara's POV

Shortly after the meeting, Ash was escorted to her room by Yuri's elder brother and a few soldiers that would be posted in front as guards until the perimeter was secured. After all we didn't want any more unwelcome guests trying to spirit Ash away again. Still, as expected my comment about Ash didn't go unnoticed…

"So you really want to go ahead and take Ash home with you Sara? What about-" Yuri began but I stopped him with a hand gesture.

"As I stated in my letter the reason I brought her here was to confirm if she was related to the Demon Tribe or your mysterious birth country in some way. However, knowing that the White Crows are involved with this I feel that Ash's well-being falls squarely on my shoulders. Since my mother was their former master she may very have some useful information regarding the survivors who now working under this new leader. Besides which, although we don't know their location this person seems to be from the human lands and therefore I can investigate the matter freely without causing a scene. No offense Yuri but even though Ranjeel is teetering on the edge of being dethroned I doubt that finding out the Demon King is snooping around Shimaron again will help. He'll use it as another excuse to keep power and demand war. I will keep you informed of any progress we make towards the truth and let you know what Ash ultimately chooses to do afterwards."

Lord Weller surprised me when he responded with, "With all due respect King Saralegui, we can't keep tossing the responsibility this matter from one side to the other," crossing his arms, he continued, "It's important that we work together and combine our resources. It's true that traveling into human territory right now with His Majesty is perhaps not the best idea, but, something tells me that if need be we could send her back to her country and place her under our...friend's protection if things became too dangerous. If everyone agrees to it, I'd like some of us to join you when you visit this village."

"Why the sudden interest Lord Weller?" I asked him sincerely. "It's unlike you to want to trouble yourself and go so far out of your way to help anyone aside from Yuri, do I detect a soft spot for our dear Ashlynn?"

Shocked by my accusation, Yuri exclaimed, "No way! Conrad, do you have a crush on Ash?!"

Unable to stifle his laughter at seeing Yuri so adamant about this, we all heard Lord Weller respond, "I wouldn't go as far as to say that Your Highness, but she reminds me of a time I too had to adapt to a country with customs so unlike my own and it's for that reason I'd like to support her. Call it a whim or call it an unexpected case of fatherly concern. I'm not sure where this feeling came from either to be quite honest. Maybe Ash also reminds me of a certain King I know when he first came to this land."

Seeming to understand the reference Yuri calmed down and smiled at him. They didn't say anything more but like always, it seemed that those two had an unspoken bond with each other that didn't need words to convey. I wondered if Yuri would tell me the story behind it one day but for now, it seemed as though the group of people who wanted to see where Ash's story lead in person had only increased. Making it harder for me to steal a moment alone with her to explore an unfamiliar feeling of my own as well when it came to this mysterious girl I'd saved from the ocean…


	13. The Gift

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note:** The song near the end was written by me, it's called "Gaps Inbetween," sorry there aren't empty spaces between verses like there's supposed to be and just ignore the "verse" and "chorus" parts so it feels like she's actually singing it. And also, I was feeling a bit romantic so I hope you like the little teaser at the end. I still haven't decided who to pair Ash with but so far the odds are in Conrad's favor. But you never know, Sara's got a thing for her already but he's never had a crush on a girl before, up until now he only had eyes for Yuri. We'll see if he ends up being serious about this or ends up only being interested because of all the mystery around her power and that she's also from the other world.

* * *

Chapter 13: The Gift

* * *

Covenant Castle: Ash's POV

I was nervous about making this trip, but at the same time I looking forward to seeing more of this world. However, this situation presented another problem I hadn't thought of until now. Ok well not in nearly enough detail. How was I supposed to thank everyone for everything they did for me? What gift can you give a bunch of guys who live in their own freaking castle and could have anything they wanted at their beckoned call?

"There's only one thing I can give…" I thought but before that I'd need a few things so I peeked outside of my room and asked one of the soldier's keeping an eye on me to see if Lady Celli was around so I could ask her something.

They seemed surprised by my request at first but must've figured I wanted to take her up that belated rose-bath offer. And I'll admit that was one reason I wanted to talk to her. Doing this definitely fell into the _'girly'_ category. But judging from what Conrad said, she was all about that sort of thing...

And he wasn't kidding!

The moment I told her my idea she was absolutely delighted, taking my hands in hers with her eyes sparkling like emeralds. "That sounds marvelous! I'm so glad you thought of me to ask for advice, I was so disappointed when you couldn't join us in the bath. Perhaps if there's time after this we could do it again?"

"Where is Gretta by the way?" I asked, expecting Gretta to tag along with her when she came to see me.

Celli smiled, "She wanted to thank you too in a different way so she's making a present for you. Gretta truly is the sweetest child. We're lucky to have her as our precious little princess."

I smiled back and nodded, "She's the lucky one to have found a family like yours. Your son Wolfram may be a hot-head but he's a good guy and cares with all of his might for her and Yuri from what I can tell."

"Yes, he certainly inherited my passion," she sighed whimsically.

"Do you think they'll even like this?" I worried aloud. "I don't have anything else and even if I did, you're all basically filthy rich. But still, I want to thank everyone in a way that only I can. They can put whatever value they want on what I'm going to try and give, the part that matters is the giving itself. Right?"

"Indeed," Lady Celli smiled back warmly, catching me off guard. "You know, you really are a wonderful young woman. It may not be obvious to you but we've come to admire that strength of yours. Just remember dear, that there's a difference between being brave and being stubborn. My sons got that from me as well as their fathers. So, no matter what you learn in that village, promise me that you'll be careful and rely on those around you that care about you more. We do not doubt your strength, but, you're a friend I'm sure none of them want to lose." Blinking, I was about to reply when she added dramatically, "Oh this is so exciting! It's been so long since a fine young lady caught the eye of one of my boys! Then again, I've seen how King Saralegui looks at you, Conrad might be in for some serious competition. Especially since he's closer to your age."

"I-what? No!" I blushed and exclaimed, "Ah I should have known! Conrad did say you love girl talk but please don't make this about me! I'm…well ok I'll admit they're both good looking but still! Can we focus on what we were talking about please? I don't have time to worry about…that."

"My my, so shy, aren't we? Alright, I understand but you must tell me which one you'd prefer courting you one of these days," Lady Celli giggled. "Now tell me again, what exactly do you need?"

* * *

Once everything was ready Lady Celli went above and beyond what I expected, she had someone set up chairs for everyone in the courtyard, even one for me on a small stage. I guess that's rich people for ya, always ready for anything, even the most obscure things. I watched them take their seats from the sidelines, gripping the instrument I'd asked for…

Yeah, that's right. I'd decided to play a song for them.

Sure it probably wasn't going to be the kind of music they were used to, which I imagined was classical, but it was something I knew I could do with confidence. I've written plenty of songs before and played a few in public. Honestly the hardest part was picking one they might like. I considered a few cover songs since no one except those who'd been to Earth might know but then I decided to play an original song. One that I wrote a few weeks before all this happened which seemed fitting.

Hard to imagine it's only been a few days since I crashed into the river and so much happened in such a short amount of time. I wondered if, if they liked my song enough I could make a living off playing music and singing here in this world. I couldn't accept their charity forever after all if I was going to be stuck here.

I could probably take care of horses too at a stable somewhere thanks to what I learned from my recent foster dad. But there would be time to consider my future later once we found out more about why I was here in the first place. For now though they were waiting for me to perform for them since it was painfully obvious now what I was up to. Taking a deep breath I walked over to my chair in the front, disappointed by the fact that this world wasn't advanced enough to have a microphone, and spoke up loud enough so that hopefully everyone could hear me clearly.

"I know this is sudden but I wanted to thank you guys somehow even if you keep saying you don't need anything in return. It feels wrong to be the only one receiving so much for nothing so…this is my gift to all of you," I pulled out the guitar from behind my back and continued, "Today, I give you a memory. It's up to you how much value there is in that. You can treat it with fondness or forget, it doesn't really matter. Just know that for now this is all I can give you despite the huge…" trailing off and feeling my eyes start to burn with the familiar sensation of tears I took another deep breath and brushed the bridge of my nose with my forefinger as I tried not to cry. "You've made such a huge impact on my life and the fact that I still have it means more than anything. And I'm sorry for making light of that because I was upset about how things have turned out since then. Anyway, let's hope I can even get through this song before crying like a big baby."

Taking my third and final deep breath, I searched their eyes one set at a time for any sign that they were ready and when I was sure they were, I strummed the first few cords. I let the melody sink in before reaching the part where the words began and sang:

 _Verse 1:_

 _There is never an easy path_

 _To a life that's full_

 _There are gaps inbetween_

 _And moments we forget to breathe_

 _Holding our breath_

 _When it seems we're about to fall_

 _Chorus:_

 _That's when we least expect a hand_

 _Reaching out, taking hold_

 _Filling in the gaps inbetween_

 _To make our lives a bit fuller_

 _Our shoulders a bit lighter_

 _And the world a little brighter_

 _Oh ooo_

 _Oh ooo_

 _Oh ooo ooo_

 _Verse 2:_

 _From on the outside_

 _It may look like we're doing fine_

 _But there are cracks inbetween_

 _Each and every smile we fake_

 _It takes just one person to see_

 _That all we want to do is cry…_

 _Chorus:_

 _That's when we least expect a hand_

 _Reaching out, taking hold_

 _Filling in the gaps inbetween_

 _To make our lives a bit fuller_

 _Our shoulders a bit lighter_

 _And the world a little brighter_

 _Oh ooo_

 _Oh ooo_

 _Oh ooo ooo_

 _Verse 3:_

 _Life doesn't stop moving_

 _Even when we feel we're standing still_

 _Caught in the gap inbetween_

 _The masses moving forward_

 _Gotta move at my own pace_

 _So I don't lose sight of who I am_

 _Chorus:_

 _That's when we least expect a friend_

 _Reaching out, being bold_

 _Filling in the gap inbetween_

 _To take our hand and start to run_

 _Towards the best that we can be_

 _And the dream we once thought lost_

 _Oh ooo_

 _Oh ooo_

 _Oh ooo ooo_

I'd closed my eyes at one point in the song to stop the tears and I kind of regret now that I did. Because as I sang from the bottom of my heart and played the guitar for them, I didn't notice the way a certain someone looked at me. Maybe if I had back then, I would have realized sooner that all the things I thought made me average back on Earth, made me special in their eyes.

Later on I would find out that I wasn't average in the least in either world. There was only one person like me. Not just because of who I turned out to be, but also because I was myself. And that was what mattered in the eyes of the person who'd end up becoming very special to me too because of who he was and that there was only one like him in the entire world.


	14. A Life Without Regrets

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note(12/18/2017):** And here we are at last, a brand new chapter!Well new to you guys since it turns out I had started working on this already but I just hadn't finished it yet.

* * *

Chapter 14: A Life Without Regrets

* * *

Covenant Castle: Conrad's POV

"Wow, that song was kinda…sad." Yuri commented in a low voice as he leaned over to me.

I nodded, although in response I explained that the message of her song seemed to be more than that. It was about dealing with the many unexpected trials in life and for the most part enduring things on your own until that moment comes when you realize you're not as alone as you thought. Most importantly, in the chorus of her song it sounded like Ash was indirectly telling us that she was very grateful for our help in a time when she least expected it.

Turns out that Ash is a lot like myself in that regard, for I too used to carrying my burdens alone. If Yuri has taught me anything since he became our King it's that admitting you can't do something alone is not a sign of weakness as I first believed it was. It takes a great deal of courage and trust to ask for let alone accept outside help sometimes. Ash admitted to us before that she was afraid of depending on others because of how unstable her family situation was growing up as an orphan, constantly changing households and living with strangers. People who may or may not have always been there for her when things didn't work out. Living like that for so long taught Ash to rely on herself and only herself. We could see how hard Ash was trying to be more openminded with us but that too was a struggle. And I for one was very proud of her stepping out of her comfort zone to thank us in such a humble way.

"Yeah…so I probably should have chosen a better song," Ash muttered under her breath as her eyes darted between Yuri and I, her cheeks burning in embarrassment. "Ok then, guess I'll just…go to my room now. Yep. Thanks for listening! Bye n-"

"You sang beautifully Ash," King Saralegui said as he smiled and rose from his seat and gently took her hand in his, kissing her knuckles which made her blush even redder. "I thought it was a very enjoyable melody."

He must've seen the same signs that I had that she was about to hole herself up in her room when we didn't react. But, how could we? Ash put a lot of emotion into her song and Yuri was right about it being rather sad. Even so we were all entranced by her voice the whole time, it was warm and comforting, so clapping seemed inappropriate.

Laughing mostly at herself and avoiding his gaze Ash replied, "Really? I thought you'd prefer something classical. You know, being a King and all."

"Is there some law that says I have to?"

"What? No! I just suddenly feel really stupid of choosing that song now. Not sure what I was expecting but dead silence sure wasn't it!"

"What on earth are you talking about? We loved your song, it was quite moving," Lady Celli assured her and twirled in delight before pulling her into yet another hug. "Don't you see? The dulcet tones of an angel swept these men off their feet and stunned them into an awed silence! Might have to be careful who you sing in front of from now on dear or else you'll need protection from multitudes of admirers as well!"

"She's right! It was so good we didn't know HOW to react!" Gunter chimed in.

Gwendal simply nodded with a secretively warm smile and Yuri went to congratulate Ash only to have Wolfram get angry with him as usual. That's when I noticed Shori sitting on the end of the row of chairs deep in thought about something apparently. I was just about to ask him what was the matter when-

"Hey Conrad, come tell Ash what you told me about her song!" Yuri called over to us, "You too Shori, get over here! We're going inside for dinner after this."

Shori sighed and stood up, giving me a sideways glance and a nod before telling me, "Don't tell Ash but the guy that attacked her said something else to me when I went to talk to him earlier. I didn't want to bring it up at all but, maybe you can help. We're still deciding who's going with King Saralegui to Cyrset right? I doubt Yuri will want me to take along this trip since it's going out of the country so could you do me a favor and meet here after dinner? I'll tell you about it then."

Taking him by the shoulder, I winked and replied, "Of course Shori, I'd be more than happy to be your sparring partner. We don't know how long this trip will last so-"

"Right. Thanks Conrad," Shori smiled and dashed over to his younger brother. Berias of course caught the whole exchange but said nothing as he strode past to rejoin his King. I soon did the same.

* * *

Given the...extreme events of the day we took it upon ourselves to reassure Ash that she was just fine and there was nothing abnormal about her powers. Yes, we admitted that they were unusual but Gunter did a fine job explaining that there was distinct a difference between rare magical abilities and those that were considered odd even here. That seemed to put her mind at ease. After that the evening was uneventful, if you didn't count dinner that is...

* * *

 _Flashback_

 _I couldn't help but laugh a little when she misunderstood King Saralegui when he reinstated his offer to purchase new more appropriate clothing that would help so she didn't stand out so much. The poor girl nearly choked on her drink as she sputtered, "You really don't have to do that! I'm perfectly capable of getting a job and paying for new clothes myself! I can't accept you buying me a whole new wardrobe for nothing! And going shopping alone with you, god, do you have any idea how people will look at us?!"_

 _Ash covered her face and sighed, muttering under her breath, "People will think we're out on a date or something!"_

 _Seeing her bashful reaction, King Saralegui laughed. "Is that what a date consists of in your country? Buying a young lady's clothes? No no, I am merely being a better host then I have been to you lately. Think nothing of it. Besides, what is your alternative? I'll have you know your old clothes have already been disposed of I'm afraid..."_

" _You've gotta be kidding me!" Ash exclaimed, though not in an angry tone but rather a defeated one. "You sly fox. I remember someone on your ship trying to get rid of my clothes too after I changed into the nightgown you gave me. I know they were torn but it's all I have left from home!"_

 _King Saralegui just smiled wickedly, "I have appearances to keep too I'll have you know. I can't have a guest of mine strolling around in torn bloody rags now can I? True they were not too badly damaged but they would have made you look out of place if you had continued to wear them. I have only your best interests at heart since Lord Weller's mother's offer to have something tailor-made for you made you even more uncomfortable. Honestly Ash," he sighed in mock disappointment, "You are clearly unused to accepting kindness without the need to repay it. As your 'memory' gift has already proven. So I thought you would be more comfortable choosing something already made in a shop and having adjustments made there."_

 _She seemed stunned by his consideration but still couldn't help but argue back and forth about the whole thing during most of the meal. Oddly enough Saralegui seemed to be enjoying himself and was almost impressed by her determination to politely turn down his offer._

 _After awhile though, Berias chimed in and said, "If I may, refusing King Saralegui's offer is only going to delay our departure. Discretion is key and looking the part will be just as important as allowing us to do our duty which is to protect you from harm. King Yuri is much the same. He too insists on being included in the affairs of his people and often must travel in disguise to do so. If you stand out too much, it will make you an easy target for those who are not a part of this organization that is after you as well. You would be helping His Highness a great deal by simply accepting it to avoid further delays. He does have a country of his own to oversee and we cannot tarry here for too much longer simply because you do not want to let go of your only reminder of home. Once we deal with this threat, we will do everything in our power to get you there safely. All I can ask for is that you do your part while we travel together."_

 _All of us nodded in agreement to Berias's observation, even my brother Wolfram. "He's right. Being stubborn only makes our job as retainers harder," Wolfram said as-a-matter-of-factually, sending a pointed glance over at Yuri who shifted and sheepishly looked away. "Getting new clothes is no big deal. It's not as though King Saralegui's taking you to a smith to forge a sword for you and then telling you you have to defend yourself without any formal training. Even he's not that heartless. He knows you have power, we all do, but none of us expect you to know how to use it properly yet. Better to keep you safe so you won't HAVE to use it since you want to return to a normal life, don't you?"_

 _Ash nodded, looking lost so her gaze shifted over to me and I smiled, adding, "Wolfram has a point. As far as we know, yes you have a special power and yes you have an unusual soul that has something to do with our world, but unlike His Highness King Yuri you are under no obligation to stay here forever. Should you choose to learn how to travel between countries under your own power we would gladly welcome you as a friend and you could visit this any time you wish. Or you can forget about us altogether and go back to your everyday life-"_

" _I don't want to forget!" Ash exclaimed again, looking horrified that I could even suggest such a thing which took me off guard so I raised a brow at her. "Forgetting about all of you would be throwing away everything you did for me and I can't do that. I already forgot about the man who died saving my life when I was a baby and that feels awful. I know I can't do anything about that, but I can burn the memory of each and every one of you into my heart so that it scars and reminds me every day that...I'm alive. And there are people who still care that I'm alive, even when I feel alone and scared. So fine," turning to Sara, she placed a hand over his and smiled with a playful wink, "You win Goldilocks, I'll go shopping with you tomorrow after all since your friends won't let me stick to my stubborn ways. But don't expect me to come cheap!"_

* * *

It took us longer then planned to meet, but once Ash was settled in for the night along with Yuri and the others Shori and I found somewhere secluded to talk. To keep up appearances, I brought a few training swords with me and handed one to Shori who just stared at it then back up at me before he complained, "I didn't think you were serious about sparring with me. I don't know the first thing about swords! Bob is training me in martial arts but that's about meditating and punching and kicking, not wielding actual weapons! I'm no samurai!"

With an amused glint in my eyes, I challenged, "Oh really? So you're not interested in learning a new skill to protect your little brother?"

"I never said that," Shori grumbled. "But now's hardly the time for this. I'm telling you, the stuff that guy told me has me on edge. Ash is in a lot more trouble then we thought, a lot more!"

Dropping the playful act, I straightened up to show him I was taking him seriously and then set the unused swords aside since he'd chosen the lightest one. "Alright Shori, you have my attention now. What did he tell you? And more importantly, why did you go to see him without an escort or telling anyone? That could have been very dangerous if he wasn't actually as helpless as he appears even without a weapon."

Shori winced at my accusation but shook his head and continued, "I think you know very well why I didn't tell anyone. First of all I didn't want news of my visit getting back to that shady King Saralegui guy. Never liked him from day one and yes he saved my little brother's life, but he's also the one who hurt and betrayed him on multiple occasions. I can't trust him. I don't trust him with my brother any more then I trust him with Ashlynn," unsheathing the training blade, Shori sighed, "You know, the last time I held a sword like this it...it nearly consumed me. Yuri saved me, like he's always saving me every time I screw up over here, and I have yet to do anything worthwhile to help my little brother! I don't want to make the same mistakes while I'm here again this time. I have to try harder to be the big brother I know Yuri can be proud of. That's why I went down to talk to that guy alone and asked him how the White Crows were doing. Despite their ulterior motives with the Divine Sword and kidnapping me way back then, I really couldn't see them as the bad guys. Alazon was just trying to save her people and Janis was being used from the very start not knowing what his own true wishes were. Even now, I...I'd like to help them turn their lives around so creeps like the King of Big Shimaron can't use them and then slaughter them like sheep. Sure, they were using him too but...it was a massacre Conrad. They didn't stand a chance. I couldn't bear the thought of watching people die in front of me so I took the sword and like my younger brother all of my thoughts were focused on saving them. I wasn't expecting to hear what that man told me about them...about just how few of them survived and why they're so willing to serve this new master."

Drawing my sword as well when Shori tried making a battle stance, I corrected, "Keep your back straight Shori, and don't put your feet too far apart or your stance will be easily broken." Nodding, Shori readjusted himself and before he could speak, I took the distraction as a chance to reply, "I understand why you acted on your own but it's the same thing we've been telling Ashlynn not to do. Acting on your own only puts you at risk and you need to learn how to rely on others more. Yosak would have been more then happy to go with you and he's good at keeping things on the down low. And I understand your hesitation about trusting King Saralegui too, we all feel the same way to some extent. However, the same can be said of most of the people Yuri associates with because we want to keep him safe from physical harm as well as that kind of heartache at the hands of another. Now tell me, what DID the mercenary tell you about the White Crows?"

Swallowing hard, Shori took a nervous step forward, not knowing how he was supposed to spar with me and replied, "He told me that the guy they're working for is- Conrad," he had cut himself off, wondering where to start when he called my name and then looked straight into my eyes, his black eyes shining in the darkness with determination as he told me, "He's a Shinzoku noble. And there's only one reason I can think of that makes sense to me why he's so bent on capturing Ash alive. Either he just wants Ash for the sake of that strange power of hers, or it's political somehow. Her hair, it turned gold when she summoned that fire spirit right? What if that means...King Saralegui isn't the only half Shinzoku we know...?"


	15. Date In The Other World!

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note(12/20/2017):** Oh yeah, looks like you guys get graced with a super long chapter this time. Hope you're prepared for lots of fluff and the beginnings of a possible romance starting to bloom. Don't worry, I still haven't decided on if this will be a SaraxOC pairing or a ConradxOc pairing yet so don't read too much into it and just enjoy the chapter for what it is. Which is hopefully something good and a natural girlish reaction to someone devoting that much attention to you when you've got no one else to turn to! At any rate, enjoy the product of my stuck home sick again chapter!

 **P.S.** We finally got snow! Hooray! About dang time!

* * *

Chapter 15: Date In The Other World?!

* * *

Berias's POV

No doubt Lord Weller knew I was watching them when he took King Yuri's elder brother aside to spar last night, but he made no move to confront me about it. I wasn't doing so on Saralegui's orders either. In actuality I was curious as to what the mercenary told Lord Shori that he had neglected to tell His Majesty when we interrogated him. When I heard that the White Crows were being led by a Shinzoku noble, I'll admit that my blood ran cold for a moment.

It could mean anything though. It could mean that now that Seisakoku was restored to it's former glory there were those who wanted to gain more political power by claiming that the famine we suffered was due to my sister's negligence or as punishment from the Gods for having children with a human. Or could it be that someone from the search party my sister formed survived and was seeking vengeance? After all, we brought only the best most able bodied men with us and more then a few were from notable families.

In the heat of the many skirmishes we faced turning our travels, I remember how I regretfully turned my back on the dead and the dying to remain by her side until the last when I chose to leave my sister when I could no longer support the choices she was making and went to the country where my nephew, Saralegui still lived with his father. After that moment I rarely thought of my homeland nor my elder sister except in rare moments of nostalgia when something about the way Saralegui spoke or moved reminded me of his mother. My concerns were focused on ensuring that he lived a long and happy life. I thought I could do nothing more for my country let alone my sister and there was no point in wasting my life away too when I could offer King Gilbert my services and in turn, better serve the only family I had left.

So to think that one of my former comrades from back then was involved with the White Crows again troubled me greatly. Then again, this noble could in fact be someone else from Seisakoku, there was no way to be sure until we met him in person. Why they were after the young lady though I couldn't say. Saralegui is the only half Shinzoku that I am aware of because I was there after he was born, I got to hold him in my arms after his mother and father got their turn and his smile filled me with hope, hope that perhaps our country was not doomed to a slow and painful death after all...

Whatever the case may be concerning the girl, I had a feeling I should alert my sister to the possible danger now that she has opened communication between Small Shimaron and her country if only for Saralegui's sake. I would of course alert Saralegui to this news as well so he wouldn't be caught off guard should we meet this man in person in that village.

I know it was not my place to eves drop on Lord Weller, but somehow it seemed as though he was counting on it. Hoping that if I was the one who informed King Saralegui he would be less likely to use this information for his own gain. If there was any gain to be had however, it was not necessarily a bad thing. The fact that he seemed interested in this girl, whether for her power or her fiery spirit, it was good that he was expanding his social engagements to more then just spending time with the Demon King. Even if she was only someone new and different in his eyes, I sincerely hoped as well that Saralegui would learn how to befriend others without an ulterior motive. He still had one of course in regards to the girl, but hearts change, and if King Yuri has taught me anything it's that true friendship can be found in the most unlikely of places...

* * *

Village: Ash's POV

The next morning, I woke up bright and early to settle my nerves by watching the sunrise. After dinner last night Lady Celli managed to talk me into taking a belated rose bath before bed and it was well worth the wait...

We talked about all sorts of things. Like how many different families I've been with, what my country was like, and much to my embarrassment, what boys I was into. Gretta meanwhile followed me around the bath like a little duckling and I had no choice but to teach her a lesson and tickle her without mercy. One thing I pride myself with in a weird way is that I've always gotten along with children younger then me. I'm not sure why but, the families I remember most fondly were the ones with younger children I could be a sisterly figure with. Although there were some kids who didn't want me as part of their family and treated me like crap but hey, kids will be kids right?

Most of my injuries were healed now thanks to my magic according to Geisila but it still through me off looking at my skin and seeing only fading scars. At least I didn't have to wear those big bandages anymore and could get away with only some gauze here or there on the bigger wounds. I still needed some normal clothes to use for the day so one of the maids offered an outfit they couldn't fit into anymore. It was a simple cap sleeved dress that cut off just above the knees and had a belt that hung around the hips with little ankle high boots to match. A bit too girly for my tastes but I would find something better to wear once we went shopping.

I still couldn't stop blushing at the idea of shopping with a king. Sara was hardly any younger then I was and the idea of him being a ruler already and not just a prince kind of threw me off. The same went for Yuri although, he seemed a lot more relaxed about being a ruler and had plenty of trustworthy adults at his side. Sure Sara had Berias too but somehow their relationship seemed a lot deeper and more formal then the one Yuri had with his friends.

Sara of course was ready and waiting for me when one of Yuri's guards escorted me to the front gate. Once I safely arrived, Berias came to my side to replace him and guided me to the carriage doors. Sara was already inside and he smiled at me, nodding to Berias who took it as a signal to open the door for me. Nope, I was never going to get used to being doted on like this. If things kept up this way I was going to lose my edge!

My heart was pounding as I ease myself into my seat across from Sara, pulling down my skirt which kept riding up my legs. God I wish I had some tights or leggings or something and wasn't showing off so much skin! I kept my eyes downcast as I fought with the unruly fabric and Sara suppressed a chuckle watching me squirm.

"This isn't funny," I grumbled, "This is why I prefer wearing pants or capri's most of the time. I only really wear dresses for special occasions or for church."

"That would explain your discomfort. I will be sure to take that into account when we reach the clothing shop," Sara smiled mildly, no longer laughing at me. "Speaking of which, is there anywhere else you would like to go after this? I wouldn't mind exploring a bit more of the Great Demon Kingdom myself since I've only seen the castle thus far and a bit of the town."

Looking up at him, I wondered, "Huh, so they really are demons? Yuri and the others? But they're not the stereotypical ones with horns that eat souls but rather the inhumanly handsome ones you see in most anime," I snickered at that last part but of course Sara only looked confused.

"An-ni-mah? What is that?" He asked and I tried to explain it the best I could.

"Well lets see, do you have anything like animation here? I don't mean like using magic to make objects move but like...hmm. Ah!" Thinking of an idea I turned to the window and drew a circle on the glass then explained, "Normal animation is a sequence of pictures put together to create the illusion of movement. I can show it to you when we get back but think of a bouncing ball. When you draw it, its just a picture, it can't move on its own, so think about drawing another circle on a separate page going slightly upwards as if bouncing and then drawing each second of it moving. By stacking the images together and flipping them it looks like they're moving. That's what animation is. But anime is something from Yuri's country, it's a type of animation specialized in that region and most of the time its about people so imagine drawing a full character like something out of a book in hundreds of pictures that line up to make them move."

I didn't miss how Sara's eyes lit up when I mentioned Yuri's birth country, it didn't take a genius to figure out that Yuri, Shori, and his friend Murata, formally known as Ken if we were using first names, were from Japan. Shori told me as much too when he was telling me his story since most of them knew I was from Earth but they weren't ready to tell Sara there were other worlds so they eluded to it being a hidden country which is why I was doing the same. I was having a hard enough time myself remembering that this wasn't Earth either and that I was not in fact in a country there that I could just get help getting a plane back to America or something. Every time I thought about it, I felt so small, and even more of an outcast then before. Still, I was trying to make the most of it.

"Fascinating. What else can you tell me about Yuri's country?" Sara asked politely, though I felt like teasing him a bit and snickered.

"What? My country isn't good enough for you? You wound me Goldilocks!"

With a sigh he asked, "That name, why do you keep calling me that?"

I blinked, "What, Goldilocks? Don't tell me you haven't heard of Goldilocks and the Three Bears?"

"I can't say that I have, is it a fairy tale in your land?" he asked, tilting his head curiously.

I nodded, getting over my shock, "Oh right, you wouldn't be familiar with that classic fairy tale. It goes like this-" after that I told him the story and once it reached the conclusion I smiled and said, "-and there you have it. Your hair reminds me of the little girl in that story so I thought it was a cute nickname. If you don't like it I'll stop of course. And I promise not to call you that in front of...other people. Like officials and stuff like that."

"My what a rude little girl she was, inviting herself in and eating all their food," Sara chuckled. "The bears had every right to eat the little girl as punishment for trespassing."

I shrugged, "Maybe, but she was trying to survive too. Anyway, um, you wanted to know more about Yuri's country? Well honestly I don't know all that much. But you pick up on things when you watch enough about characters that live in that sort of setting."

Waving his hand, Sara smirked, "It's alright. We can always talk about that later. Why don't you tell me more about your country? What was it you told Lord Voltaire? That your country has fifty smaller provinces? How is that even possible? Your country must be vast indeed! And how we've never come across such a land is surprising to say the least."

Swallowing hard when I felt like there was a double meaning in his words, I continued, "That's one way I explained it yeah, but originally we started as thirteen small colonies fighting for independence from our homeland overseas that were being jerks and overtaxing us. Then we..."

* * *

After giving Sara an abridged history lesson we finally made it to the store which seemed to have taken forever and he took my hand as I stepped down, again, sending a thrill of energy up my spine at the contact which made me blush. "T-Thanks."

Sara simply nodded and then waited for Berias to join us before we stepped inside. An awed gasp escaped my lips when I saw the many rows of fabric and premade outfits displayed on either side of us. After Sara gave me an approving nod I looked around the store on my own. Before long the shop keeper arrived and once he knew that someone as rich as Sara would be paying for everything I was immediately bombarded with selections from a very burly man with kind crinkled eyes, though his kindness was almost tenfold with the prospect of making so much gold off my purchases.

Despite the quip I made last night about not coming cheap I had no intention of actually making him spend too much on my account. I figured I needed at least three casual outfits, a nightgown, something warm, some undergarments, a dress for formal occasions, a cloak, and that was about it. After some debate with the shop keeper that I needed casual clothes he eventually picked out a few for me to try on and then shooed me off so he could speak to Sara and maybe talk him into getting me one of everything in the store. I rolled my eyes at the idea and started changing into the first outfit.

I expressed my desire for pants and or leggings since I don't feel too comfortable in dresses and like to have the freedom to move around so I was grateful for the leather leggings that came with this outfit that stitched up the sides. Along with the dark green blouse I felt like a real huntress and liked how it looked with my reddish brown hair and fair skin. I flexed my arms, raised them above my head to do a tummy check, and then nodded, approving of the first outfit. The next one didn't fit as well and was too loose in the back, it was a lace up tunic made of leather with a white undershirt and I couldn't get it tight enough on my own. I liked the earthy brown tone though so maybe they could adjust it if we gave them my proper measurements after all. While keeping the undershirt on I tried on another pair of leggings, these ones more of a blackish blue but they were too tight around my thighs. I tried on the blouse that went with it but the blue just didn't look right on me, it had too much of an oily sheen that would have gone better with someone with black hair. When I got to the last outfit, I had to stop and stare at myself in the mirror for a long minute before I recognized myself...

The last outfit consisted of a red blouse with a court collar, slightly puffed sleeves, and a short skirt made with the same red fabric to match the final pair of leather pants. It looked so normal on me, like it was made for me and I could help bus shrink back from the idea. This wasn't my world. Those memories of my past might be real but who was to say they were from THIS lifetime? If I had past lives like Geisila suggested then maybe that happened to someone else right, and I was just reborn on earth or something!

Resting my hand against the cool glass of the mirror, I sighed, "There's no point in getting so worked up. They're just clothes!"

I nearly jumped out of my skin when Berias knocked on the door frame and asked, "Lady Ashlynn, is everything alright?"

"Y-yeah!" I called hastily, gathering the other clothes I had tried on into my arms and reaching for the door handle, "Sorry I took so long. The second outfit didn't fit right so can we look for something else?"

"As you wish," Berias nodded and offered to take the clothes from me.

I protested but he took them from me anyway and before long we finally finished shopping for most of what I needed there but begrudgingly the three of us agreed that a woman's touch was needed for the more...feminine items on my list. Still, I was happy with our progress and was thankful for the change of clothes after all. Too bad I ended up with five casual outfits instead of three. Well, so much for that plan!

I changed back into the red outfit since it was the most comfortable and frankly my favorite out of all of them and thankfully, well near as I could tell anyway, it didn't cost Sara an arm and a leg to buy everything. I thanked him again for doing all this and he seemed pleased that I was more relaxed about the whole thing and not fighting them every step of the way like before. I'll admit I was being kind of childish but they didn't seem to mind too much, and now that we were actually doing it I wasn't as apprehensive.

Shortly after everything was safely packed away in the carriage the three of us made our way to a local restaurant in town and I got to try some more of this world's unusually colored foods. Mostly the fruits were strange colors but I guess meat is universal and I greatly enjoyed the stew I ordered. Berias embarrassed me a little when he was testing it for poison but it made sense why he'd do that. He didn't do the same for Sara though because it turns out he had been exposed to several poisons by a doctor before and had built up an immunity to some of the more deadly ones.

Hearing that though I couldn't help but wince, "That must have been awful, taking prescribed poisons. I'm not sure if I could do that."

"It's better the suffering the alternative," Sara shrugged, sipping his tea.

I nodded, "True enough. I wonder if it's the same here though..." picking up my spoon, I pointed to it and smiled, "Fun fact, but did you know that silver turns black when it comes into contact with poison? That's why rich people back in the old days used to-" I stopped, dropping my spoon with a clatter when a splitting pain made my head throb and I gasped.

Berias of course caught me when I swayed in my seat and asked, "What's wrong? Are you unwell?"

"They're here..." I muttered, or rather, the other me muttered through my lips. "They are searching for me...but I won't let them find her. We should hurry back and tell the others."

"You again. Who are you?" Sara asked, his eyes shining when mine bled from their normal reddish-ember to solid gold.

Looking up at him, she met his gaze and nodded, "Me again. I know you have questions but it is not my place to answer them. You'll need to find the truth and see it with your own eyes. But know this..." she cupped a hand on his cheek, oblivious to the stares of the other patrons and smiled, "Not all the sins of the past have to end in tragedy. Remember that."

* * *

Before Sara could ask her to elaborate I snapped out of my daze and looked at Sara and Berias, bewildered. "Oh great, did I zone out again?" I began, trying to laugh it off but my shaking in Berias's arms betrayed how freaked out I was. "I think that's our cue to start heading back. I think those creeps are looking for me, I feel like we're being watched..."

"Right you are," Sara smiled though it didn't reach his eyes, as though honestly he felt cheated for some reason. "Berias, help Ashlynn to the carriage. I'll be along shortly."

"Yes Sir," Berias nodded and before I knew it he scooped me up bridal style and carried me out, clearly not trusting in my ability to walk right now which yeah, probably was a fair guess since my head kept drumming against the inside of my skull. Meanwhile, Sara paid for our meal and wasn't far behind before helping me into the carriage as well.

I felt awful for more then one reason. For one thing me head was killing me, and secondly, even though this wasn't a real date I felt like my migraine had just ruined it. And I was having such a good time too, finally unwinding a bit and enjoying my other worldly adventure a little more. Just like everything else, the moment I let my guard drop, it fell apart...

Sniffling and letting a few tears fall, I closed my eyes and told them softly, "I'm sorry..."

"It's not your fault," Sara assured me, vacating his seat on the other side to sit right beside me, taking my hand and rubbing the top soothingly with his own soft fingertips. "We knew they would try their hand at locating you once word got out that you've successfully used magic or whatever your power is. It means there might be others in the vicinity besides that lone outlaw that came after you before. His Eminence agreed that this shopping trip might help us lure them out as well. I'm sorry we didn't tell you sooner. But I sincerely wanted you to have a good time today and didn't want to worry you."

"I guess that makes sense..." I breathed, not really in the mood to talk. "For the record though, I wish you would have told me sooner. At least then I could have braced myself for...this!" I flinched when the pain worsened then I growled, "If they're just looking for me why does it hurt?!"

Not sure how to answer that, Sara sighed and switched the position of his hand to my forehead so he could brush some hair behind my ear as he admitted, "Because it might not be _'you'_ they're searching for. They might only be interested in the soul you carry, nothing more. Just rest if it's too painful to stay awake. Yuri and I will handle this."

I whimpered, feeling helpless so I leaned into his touch, searching for any kind of comfort. He responded by pulling me into his arms and stroking my hair as he hushed me. It felt similar to the way he comforted me back on his ship so now I knew it was him who took care of me when I cried myself to sleep. And right now, I didn't care of he was only acting the part of a gentleman, if his words were sweet nothings I wanted desperately to hear. The fact was that I had no one but them to rely on. And when someone puts this much effort into comforting you and making you feel wanted...how could you not feel the beginnings of a helpless, pointless, fruitless love start to grow in your heart for that person...?


	16. Don't Forget To SING

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note(12/21/2017):** Sorry if this ends up a little more angst-y than usual but it SHOULD result in a good laugh. Weird I know but you'll just have to read to see what I mean. And besides I wanted to show that yeah, Ash may be a normal girl on the outside but she's resourceful and knows how to defend herself against some basic threats. It's meant to be a sort of wake up call for our lovely KKM boys that earth girls, like for example Yuri and Shori's mom, can be formidable in their own rights. Anyway sorry this is kinda short but hey, it balances out that super long one right?

* * *

Chapter 16: Don't Forget To S.I.N.G.

* * *

Castle Gates: Ash's POV

"Ash! What happened?" Yuri asked the moment I stepped inside, leaning heavily on Sara's shoulder and gripping my head.

I shook my head, unable to answer so Sara did it for me. "His Eminence was right, it would seem that our enemy was very eager to test their new-found clarity when it comes to trying to pin point her presence. During lunch Ash began suffering a terrible migraine so I hurried back here to find out what our next move is. But I suggest we hurry. She's not doing very well."

While I hadn't changed into that other me, thank god, every so often my aura would pulse and the tips of my hair would bleed to gold. It was like I was being forced to change so they could find me and travel to where I was through the same transportation method I used to get here in the first place that had something to do with water. I hated this feeling. Hated being scared and in pain. That's why I bit the bottom of my lip so hard that it bled while I was trying desperately not to faint from the pain. There HAD to be a better way to lure out the bad guys then this!

Yuri must have agreed with me because when his friend Murata joined the scene he scolded, "Murata! You didn't tell me that Ash's shopping trip was a set up! Hasn't Ash been through enough the last few days? How is making her feel like crap again supposed to help when she's-"

 _He's right,_ I thought, suddenly feeling intensely angry as I watched Murata try to explain his reasons in a calm calculating manner. _I'm not entirely helpless, they could have told me about their plans but instead they just...used me. We're friends right? Or no, what am I saying? I'm just a problem they're trying to fix. Well maybe I don't need them!_

Shrugging off of Sara's shoulder it was like my body went on auto-pilot and before I knew it, my knuckles clenched, and with all of my might I punched Murata squarely in the face. After that, all of my pent up rage exploded and I shouted, "I am SICK of being treated like a helpless little girl. I don't care if you are trying to help me that doesn't give you ANY right to use me as bait like that! I may not know much about this world, but I'm sure as hell not entirely useless! Damn it!" I covered my mouth with the same fist I used to punch him with, which was shaking like a leaf, while I stifled a sob and rounded on Sara next. "And you, you went along with it too! You told me as much in the carriage. Well congratulations! Your little plan worked didn't it? Now I can lay awake at night dreading the next attack, wondering who will be held hostage next time, or who might get hurt and die, and knowing I can't do a thing about it! Oh, but hey, maybe my super powered doppelganger can fix everything right? It's not like anyone wants ME around anyway. Not my real parents, my foster parents, not even you. I'm just some problem that needs fixing!"

I knew I was getting hysterical but I didn't care, I couldn't care, because it hurt too much. Everything hurt. It's always the same, every time I let my guard down the universe finds away to rip into me, making my heart bleed itself dry. What I was feeling for Sara, it wasn't love. It was desperation for someone to want or maybe even NEED me in their lives. He was a good person from what I could tell but, there were better women out there for him then someone as broken and emotional as me. My stupid human self was less then useless on my own. It was this soul they cared about, this soul was actually a part of something momentous, this soul was what made me feel at home and welcome here...so maybe if I became just a soul-

"No..." dropping my arm, I stared down at Murata who was rubbing his sore cheek and I shook my head as I backed away slowly, mortified at what I'd just thought. "No this is wrong. No matter how bad I feel, I should never think like that! Oh god, I'm so sorry. What the hell am I doing? Just yesterday we were getting along fine, and now I'm-!"

"Ashlynn! Calm down!" A pair of firm but gentle hands stopped me before I could turn on heel and run and his voice, somehow it already had a calming effect on me but I wanted to cover my ears, shut out the whole world. He wouldn't let me though so I struggled.

"Let go of me!" instinct took over and I used those self defense moves I was taught that somehow managed to catch even a skilled soldier like Conrad off his guard.

I pulled my arms out in front of me and sort of like what I did with the punch I elbowed him sharply in the gut with all my might, waited for the exact moment his grip on my shoulders loosened. Then I promptly stomped on his foot, elbowed him up in the nose too when he hunched over with a startled gasp. And finally I went in for the real pain and hit him in the groin with my fist. It all happened so fast and I bolted inside the castle as soon as I was free. I didn't stop to make a snarky remark or apologize for hitting TWO people just now who were only doing what they thought was best for me. And I didn't stick around long enough for the stunned silence to break when Sara burst out laughing at the sight of seeing a girl no older then seventeen in human years take down an ancient sage and war hero in less then five minutes.

* * *

Infirmary: Sara's POV

"Sara knock it off, it's not funny! Did you see how freaked out she was? You guys really messed this one up and you know it. Be thankful she didn't barbecue you instead!" Yuri scowled when I couldn't contain my laughter.

"No no, you're right but still, CLEARLY we've underestimated Ash. To think that she took down two highly esteemed gentlemen like that even without her powers is just-" I snickered, "Come now, even you must have found that display somewhat amusing. I know he's the greatest swordsman in the Great Demon Kingdom, he must be getting soft in his old age. As for your Great Sage, well, his only skills revolved around that rather large head of his."

Stepping in, Yuri's annoying fiance' pointed out, "You got of scott free so of course you'd think its funny but you're just as much to blame for this as they are!"

"They? As I recall didn't you agree to this plan too?" I said sharply, pointing out the painfully obvious flaws in his observations. "We talked bout this. The more enemies we lure out into the open now the better so they might show their hand before our strength as well as numbers decline once I return to Shimaron with the people we've chosen to help investigate the village of Cryset. Neither of us were expecting their tracing spell to hurt her. And as you can see, I came clean once the truth became obvious and didn't try to hide it from her. Doesn't that count for anything? Besides, she was getting hysterical and despite her outburst it's clear to me that Ash still wants to rely on us, she's just afraid to because someone might get hurt on her account. So don't you dare accuse me of being the only one to blame for how she reacted."

To my surprise, even His Eminence stood up for me and after removing the ice pack from his cheek he added, "King Saralegui has a point. If we had taken into account how hard it is for Ash to trust people after being disappointed and betrayed by her friends and would-be families, then maybe we could have avoided this mess. It took our combined efforts to even get her to agree to go out shopping with him in the first place. So yes, we're all to blame for tricking her into doing this. And yeah, you gotta admit we got off lucky since we've actually seen a small taste of what she can really do. Not even a fire master like Wolfram can heat metal to a near melting point in mere seconds with ONLY the force of his will. His attacks are forceful and explosive just like that type of combat-based magic should be. Her fire though...it's not like the kind we use. It's more intense. More focused. Like bending light through a magnifying glass to burn ants on an ant hill. I think that Ash only busted out those self-defense moves on Lord Weller and myself counts as a blessing the way I see it. You know what they say, _'hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.'_ "

Lord Weller only nodded in response, looking troubled more then in pain. Although she took him by surprise of course Ash wasn't nearly strong enough physically to leave any lasting marks on him. And knowing him I doubted his pride had taken a hit from this embarrassing defeat. No doubt Lord Weller was more concerned about his failure when he tried to help her calm down and snap out of her raising panic attack. Yet, there was something about his silence that seemed off. He seemed contemplative, as if something about Ash's actions or words reminded him of something from the past he would rather not recall. I didn't like it. It almost felt as though he was plotting against me and didn't even realize it...

Well I had news for him. He already had Yuri, much to my regret since there was a time and perhaps there still was a part that wanted him all to myself. But this girl, she was so unlike anyone I've ever met before. She was bashful yet strong willed, kind yet intelligent, contemplative and witty, and most of all, she was not like everyone else. Powers or no, Ash was turning out to be an interesting young lady and I admired the way her eyes lit up whenever she tried to explain the advanced technologies and history of her people which was unlike anything found here in this world.

Yes, they thought I wouldn't figure it out but it all made sense. It made sense why I've never heard of these strange lands nor their customs, and why the devices she described sounded so fantastical and other-worldly. And this would also explain that wherever Yuri runs off to from time to time, it ends up leaving no trace of him whatsoever. Because when he vanished, he was no longer IN this world but in the same one Ashlynn came from. Although from the sound of it, their two countries were far apart from each other and vastly different in their own rights. Either way, I've already decided that not only do I want to know more about their REAL world, I want to know more about her so I could decide once and for all whether or not she had the potential of becoming someone more...noteworthy to me.


	17. Finding Strength In Heartache

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note(12/23/2017):** Couldn't sleep, too excited for trip to see little sister for the holidays. So here, new chapter for you! Zzzzzzz...

* * *

Chapter 17: Finding Strength In Heartache

* * *

Infirmary: Conrad's POV

I'm not entirely sure why but I couldn't get those frightened words Ash said to us out of my head. They kept repeating over and over and then...memories from my past came forth as if to mirror how I felt a long time ago. Like an outcast, unwanted, an easily sacrificial soldier just like my comrades who all shared one common trait. We were half human...

 _It's not like anyone wants ME around anyway. Not my real parents, my foster parents, not even you._ Yuri has felt this way too, to a degree, that the only reason anyone cared about him was because of whose soul he carried. To everyone else he was our precious new Demon King, but to me, at least at first, Yuri was just a living reminder of everything I treasured about Julia. It had taken some time and a lot of various experiences while traveling together with Yuri before I realized that they were two separate people and I was allowed to separate the fondness I had for Julia with the feelings I now had for Yuri himself.

Ash didn't have any of this.

She didn't have someone as far as we knew who was aware of her past life, or lives. She lost the only person who knew the truth about who she was a long time ago. And over here Ash was forced to rely on the aid of strangers who only had a vague idea of how to handle her situation. At first it seemed so simple. Find the people threatening her, learn the truth, then send her home to where things made sense and she didn't have to question if she was safe or wanted. But after what just happened it looked like things were a lot deeper then that.

There was a time when I believed that no one wanted me either, with the exception of my mother and childhood friend Yosak. So it didn't matter if I gave people the cold shoulder. It didn't matter if they hated me for no reason other then my half human blood, because I could drown out their hatred with my own bitterness and dim view of the world. Ash was the opposite of how I was back then. She tried so hard to stand on her own without hating the people who wronged her because Ash felt like if she grew to hate all the people that let her down she wouldn't be someone worthy of being loved anyway.

Putting on a brave face Ash braced herself and kept her hopes up even after she was faced with the same treatment from those around her time and time again when the people she thought would accept her and open their homes to her, left her feeling unwanted and belittled...

I didn't need acceptance. I didn't need anyone to stick their necks out for me, or so I thought. Ash does though. She wants to feel like she's a part of something and not just a castaway drifting from place to place, her opinions and feelings brushed aside because of her youth and circumstances. How could we have been so blind? Ash knew she didn't have many options being stranded in a strange world with dangerous people chasing her so she reluctantly put her faith in us. Even then, expecting the same result where we would keep tossing around the responsibility of caring for her from us to King Saralegui and back as though she was an object, not a person.

We never once asked her what she wanted. We only assumed she wanted to be kept safe and find some answers as to why these men are after her. If we had simply let her go back to Earth without a second thought, there was no doubt in my mind she would have been captured instantly and it would be entirely our fault she fell into the enemy's hands. There's no way we could let that happen. And even if the White Crows weren't involved there were other factors that we couldn't ignore when it came to her. She was in danger, she was from Earth, and she clearly possessed a very unique soul similar to Yuri's in that there was another consciousness residing within her, a sentient one that could think for itself not unlike the Demon King inside of Yuri.

That, if nothing else would make her a huge target for anyone seeking a power equal or greater than his. If she was a danger to herself and or others then we needed to watch over her that much more and ensure that King Saralegui of all people didn't push Ash too far. His Eminence was right. Ash was a good girl, but she was dangerous and her emotions right now are unstable. Had she not practiced that much restraint on her power when Ash had that emotional outburst, the whole Kingdom could have gone up in flames! Yuri was not immune to emotional outburst either that caused a magical outbreak but even his reactions were predictable and localized, and as much as we liked to believe Ash was in control even as emotional as she was a moment ago, there was always the possibility that this could change at any time.

Ash wasn't used to being treated like anyone important any more then Yuri had been when he first arrived. But again, unlike him, there was no one waiting for her with answers in hand as to why. She was alone in both worlds. Unsure of where she belonged and wondering if her life even mattered to us. The very thought of that...it made my heart ache for her because I knew the feeling. If my life didn't matter to anyone, then I would MAKE it matter by leaving behind a memory that no one would soon forget. As long as I died for a greater purpose, then I was content with that. If I died for someone else's sake it meant my heart wasn't completely numb to love and the feelings of kinship. I was still human. Ash had no one to love or be loved by yet she continued to care, sometimes too much, for total strangers. Maybe that's why I didn't want to be a stranger to her. I wanted to give her at least one shoulder to lean on since out of all of us Ash seemed to trust me the most. I would just have to do my best be that pillar of support for her, and hopefully not become only her personal punching bag to take out her frustrations on...

* * *

Bedroom: Ash's POV

How I made it all the way back to my new room I haven't the faintest clue but as soon as I did, reality hit me like a ton of bricks. What happened back there? Why did I punch Murata and not Sara? And what in god's name was I thinking when I attacked Conrad like he was a-

"Oh god, oh god, oh GOD! What did I just do?!" I exclaimed, my heart hammering and my face unbearably hot as I blushed. "I just punched Murata in the face and Conrad in the..." I couldn't bring myself to say it and sat down on the floor, hugging my knees. "Well that settles it, the next time I see them I'm going to ask for someone to point out the tallest tower or nearest cliff so I can proceed to fling myself off of it. With any luck, I'll turn into that phoenix and fly far away from, finally out of everyone's misery."

After I said that I thought of that one scene in Forrest Gump when Jeanie was a little girl and started praying that she would turn into a bird so she could fly far far away from her troubles. Too bad I was the one who flew HERE to get away from those men who were chasing me and I didn't know that's what they were up to at the time. Maybe that was it. I thought, slowly standing up and walking over to the pitcher of water on the dining table next to the window. I wasn't sure how much I needed to do this but just maybe-

Just as my fingers were about to close around the handle, I hesitated. "Wait a minute-" letting my hand drop slowly, I laughed humorlessly. "Now why would my kidnappers want to spook me by letting me sense them using a tracking spell? Why not just infiltrate the castle again like before? They're expecting me to come running right to them. You sneaky jerk-wads. Well, I'm not going to let anyone else trick me today you hear me? I'm done with it."

Turning on heel, I kicked off my new boots which were killing me anyway since I hadn't broken them in yet and flopped onto the bed spread eagle and stared at the canopy drapes for who knows how long. I was emotionally tapped out. Again. I knew what I did was wrong, but at the same time it served them right. Well, Murata maybe but not Conrad. Murata was the big brains of the group and because he was such an old soul and literally a wise man they hung on his every word. At least Sara fessed up and tried to apologize for tricking me, claiming he just wanted me to have a good time. And despite all this drama afterwards, I DID have a good time. I was just worried that because of my outburst everyone was going to be walking on egg shells around me from now on...

I sighed, resting an arm over my eyes, "Nice move Ash. This is what you get for getting swept away by these men with their pretty faces."

* * *

I rolled over onto my side when I heard the door creak open, facing the window. I still didn't want to see anyone because I was so ashamed by the way I acted and for another thing, my head still hurt. After a while I fell asleep with my arm over my eyes to block out the sunlight and only woke up about an hour ago and took a drink of water from the same pitcher I nearly used to make a sad escape attempt after beating up a fellow teenager and a grown man who was who knows how old since demons are usually long-lived in most fantasy's...

When the door creaked open I huffed in annoyance and said, "Unless you're here to haul me off to prison for assault please go away. I know I was out of line back there but, whatever. I should have known that shopping trip was a load of...!" I flinched when I felt the other end of the bed sink down a bit as someone sat down on the edge.

My whole body tensed up and I clamped my mouth shut, heart racing again. Why weren't they saying anything? Who was there? Unable to stand not knowing who it was I opened my eyes to find someone completely unexpected sitting there. I should have known because how gradual the dip in my bed was, as though they weighed next to nothing. It was Gretta. And she looked really worried about me.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you up," Gretta apologized shyly. "I was going to leave my present on the table when I saw you crying in your sleep, or at least your eyes looked kinda wet, I couldn't tell so I wanted to make sure. Did you have a bad dream?"

Touching my eye and feeling a cool dampness on my cheek I nodded, smiling sadly, "The worst. I dreamt I punched Murata in the face and beat up Conrad too."

"Are they the ones that made you cry?" she asked as I sat up slowly. "That can't be true because they're really nice!"

I bit my lip, tasting some dry blood from when I bit it earlier, and told her, "Gretta, sometimes even when people are trying to be nice they do things that make other people mad or cry. Sometimes, they don't want to be helped that way..." scooting over to her, I swung my legs over the bed and asked, "So what was it you wanted to give me?"

"This!" Gretta beamed, whipping out a drawing of us when that kidnapper attacked us and forgetting all about my serious tone just now. I chuckled a little when I saw that Gretta had drawn me setting that man on fire while she cheered behind me, talk about morbid, the bad guy had X's for eyes and everything as I burned him alive.

"You were so cool when that bad man grabbed me. Almost as cool as Anissina! So I wanted to draw a picture so you wouldn't forget," again, she smiled so innocently, completely unaware of the implications of that drawing.

I stared at it for a solid minute before I handed it back to her, my voice thick with emotion. "I'm sorry Gretta, I know you worked really hard on this but could you draw me something else instead? In that drawing, I feel like the bad guy for hurting that man. Even if it was to protect you. And earlier, uh, in my dream, I was mean to Conrad and Murata because I thought they did something mean to me without meaning to..."

My heart physically hurt when her face fell and Gretta asked me, "You don't like it?"

I shook my head, "It's not that Gretta. I just...I hurt-" brushing the bridge of my nose like I always did when fending off tears when they're just starting, I blinked them away and tilted my head up, waiting for the wetness to receed before I continued, "I hurt the people I care about Gretta, my friends, and I'm scared they won't like me anymore because of it. Scared that they never liked me to begin with and just felt sorry for me. That's why I got mad and punched them. I feel awful about it."

I blinked in surprise when Gretta's eyes bore into mine with a profound sense of understanding and she cupped her tiny hands on my cheeks, the drawing forgotten and said, "It's ok. If they're really your friends they'll forgive you. I hurt Yuri once too because I was mad that my aunt and uncle didn't want me and thought that if I hurt him, they'd like me. I didn't like Yuri at first so I tried to hurt him, but, then he said I was cute and tried to help me anyway. I didn't understand why Yuri would do that for someone who tried to hurt him until he told me I was special to him, that I mattered. That's when I realized...Yuri was everything I wanted from my family. He loved me for no special reason except that I was me, forgave me even though I did a bad thing, and he made me feel like someone finally wanted me. Gwendal told me you don't have a mommy or daddy either. And maybe you're too old for Yuri to adopt too but you're a nice person! I really like you. So even if you did a bad thing I know they'll forgive you! So don't feel bad ok? I like you best when you're smiling."

Feeling a well of raw emotion I cupped my hands over hers and stained her small tanned hands with my tears as I wept. "Thank you Gretta. I'll try to believe that..."


	18. Forgiveness

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note(12/28/2017):** Seriously I can't decide on the main pairing and it's fun to imagine a rivalry form between Sara and Conrad over Ash, though with the latter he doesn't even realize he's falling for her since it's something Conrad never expected to happen given how devoted he is to Yuri and was to Julia. Sara's sort of similar although he has the advantage of being closer to Ash's age and he's starting to seriously consider pursuing her seriously because it's possible that she might be half Shinzoku too even though Berias hasn't told him that yet. Again we'll see how things go but please feel free to PM me with suggestions and or review and let me know who you're rooting for. Lastly, sorry if Ash is kind of all over the place, I'm trying to write her as a caring person with a painful past but right now she's coming off as...I dunno, childish? Hope that's not the case but if it is then please tell me so I can try to fix it. I have my mind on resuming Ravenheart anyway so I'm a little distracted too which is why this story might be put on hold again soon...

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Chapter 18: Forgiveness

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Infirmary: Ash's POV

With Gretta's support, I mustered the courage to make my way to the infirmary although really, I couldn't have hurt them THAT badly. If anything I wounded Conrad's pride and Murata's cheek was still sore. No one came to arrest me so I felt better that my jab at getting thrown in jail wasn't going to become a reality. In fact, everyone left me alone with the exception of the guards posted at my door who asked if I was alright when I first came running back to my room, half blinded by tears. I managed to say I wasn't in danger but that didn't mean I wasn't upset so they left me alone for the most part and just did their job. That is, until Gretta convinced them to let her inside to leave my 'present' of that drawing.

I felt like such a coward relying on Gretta leading me to where they were after fessing up that I actually DID beat them up and it wasn't a dream. To our surprise though, no one was there. Well no one but a maid who was picking up some bloody rags to be washed and I winced, _Oh no, I didn't break Murata's nose did I?_

Noticing our presence, she bowed and smiled at Gretta as she asked, "Well hello Princess, what brings you here? If you're looking for the others I'm afraid His Eminence has retired to the Tomb of the Great One for the evening and Lord Weller-"

"Actually, I'm the one looking for them. Gretta is just..." I interrupted, or started to when I faltered, suddenly unsure of myself again and I looked down at Gretta wondering if she could just pass along my message. Too bad the person I least wanted to see stepped out of the dressing room back in full uniform while carrying a slightly bloody jacket over one arm...

I went pale. _Don't tell me I'm the one who gave HIM a bloody nose. I thought Murata was the one I hit harder..._

"I hardly think a change of clothes was necessary but here you go, would you mind washing these too Effe?" Conrad asked the maid, smiling politely.

"Of course," she bowed and accepted the clothes from him before leaving through the opposite door.

Taking my chance I turned to leave but the grip on my hand from Gretta kept me from fleeing. The halt in my progress gave Conrad plenty of time to notice us and he blinked, as if surprised to see me and then he smiled. "Hello Ash, feeling any better now?"

"How am _I_ feeling...?" I scoffed, blushing and looking everywhere else but at his annoyingly handsome face. "You're the one I knocked flat on his back and you're wondering if I'M ok? Well no, not really but...god I'm so sorry Conrad!" Finally looking up at him, relaxing a bit when his expression didn't change and he just continued to smile warmly at me I continued. "I really don't know what got into me. It was probably because I wasn't feeling well that it was so easy to get mad at you guys. I know you're trying to help and more importantly...I figured out why they're trying to hurt me."

"Who?" Conrad asked, his body tensing visibly at the mention of a threat.

"You know, the Ex-White Crows? That's why I wanted to come find you guys, to tell you I'm sorry for freaking out and discuss a few things before my head starts feeling fuzzy again. They're still watching me, I'm sure of it, but they don't want to make things too difficult for me I guess. How considerate of my would-be kidnappers right?" I smiled weakly then asked more shyly. "So Conrad? Do you...think you can forgive me for what happened?"

He nodded, his expression sincere yet serious as he strode over and gently placed a hand on my shoulder. "There's nothing to forgive Ash. We knew what we were doing but didn't think of how it would effect you until it was already too late. You were right. It was a mistake not to include you in our plans to flush out the enemy if possible before our numbers dwindle just as King Saralegui pointed out to us earlier. I hope you'll forgive our carelessness for not considering your feelings. After all this is your future we're talking about, not to mention your past we're trying to uncover."

With a deep sigh, I nodded. "Well, with the way things have been going it was only a matter of time before it all got to me. At least I didn't burn the city down with my crazy pyrokinesis since I'm not entirely sure what I'm really capable of yet. When Gretta was caught, I acted totally on instinct in the heat of the moment but who knows if I actually have that much control normally? Anyway, as long as I didn't disfigure anyone...I feel a bit better now. I did feel really bad about lashing out before but Gretta-" smiling, I gave her hand a squeeze and glanced down at her before saying, "-she reminded me that trust goes both ways and if people really care about you, then little things like this won't ruin an entire friendship. I really hope that's true. Because -and maybe I'm being silly even thinking this but- I guess the nice thing about being swept away to another world is no one here can judge me. At least, not about the same things and people won't have a reason to treat me the way I was treated back home because I don't have a family. Helping me might only be a chore for you guys, but still, it's a relief that you guys care enough about me that you're willing to deal with my drama. Most people would just point to the nearest door and tell me to _'deal with it'_ on my own. Which is exactly what the bad guys wanted me to do! They wanted me to run away from here because I thought I was being too much trouble."

Realizing what I meant, Conrad lifted his hand under his chin and mused, "Yes, we did find it odd that they would choose to use a spell that hurt you rather then keep just an eye on you from the shadows. So what you're saying is that it was their intention to frighten you enough to attempt to transport yourself back to Earth on your own?"

"Exactly," I nodded again, looking out the nearest window when Gretta let go of my hand and hugged my waist. Putting a hand on her shoulder, I replied, "While I didn't mean everything I said, it's true that I'm not as helpless as you guys think I am. Not by a long shot! And the only way this is going to work is if we're all in this together. I'm not a damsel in distress anymore. I know I was when I nearly drowned in my car but...if there's something I can do to make this whole thing easier for everyone then please just tell me next time. If I need to stay quiet and follow your lead, fine. If I need to act as bait to lure out the bad guys, sure I'll be scared, but as long as I know I'm not alone I'm sure I can do it. And if I need to cause a scene, well that sounds like a lot more fun then just sitting on the sidelines of my own story. I need to know when I can do something to help and when doing nothing is our best option." Laughing, I also added, "If I don't know which role I'm supposed to play then I'm totally going to improvise and do whatever I want! Seriously, you'll be way better off giving me a proper script to follow."

* * *

I'd say that went pretty well and for some reason Conrad has this uncanny way of making me feel more at ease when I'm around him. Maybe it's because he's been through this too, I dunno. While he didn't get into too much detail about why he went there Conrad told me he's been to Earth before and adjusting to all of the cultural differences was difficult for him at first, even for a seasoned warrior such as himself. Eventually he adjusted and managed to blend in pretty well by the end of his visit.

I'm really glad Gretta talked me into this, apologizing in person. I still need to talk to Murata but I wasn't up for visiting the Tomb again just yet. Especially since I still felt guilty about what happened there too during the ritual, although honestly I hardly remember anything accept waking up in Sara's arms...

It was getting late too and Gretta was falling asleep in my arms while Conrad and I talked about a lot of different things, like how our otherworldly outings felt, and about our ideas on how best to approach the village of Cyrset. I left a lot of the planning to Conrad since, again, he was way more experienced with this sort of thing. Books could only teach me so much about real life strategy in a fantasy world setting. After all, these guys don't only have swords and bows, but they have something called _'Esoteric Skills'_ which according to Conrad was like the total opposite of their magic powers and being around too much of it could seriously hurt a Demon with strong powers.

"Ok, I think I get it, so since you keep calling what I can do _'magic'_ then that means I'll be at a disadvantage if they use that esoteric stuff against me?" I asked, sitting on the edge of one of the infirmary beds while Conrad sat on the one opposite from me.

"It's possible, athough to be honest we're not quite sure yet since your particular powers are...unusual even to us," Conrad replied. "At any rate, Gretta looks about ready to call it a night so shall I escort you to your room?"

I shook my head, "Tempting offer but no, I'm probably better off waiting here since my head still hurts. Do you think Geisila will be back soon? I was kinda hoping she had some medicine that could help."

"She should be back shortly," Conrad assured me.

Patting Gretta's head gently, I was suddenly struck by a weird thought and said. "You know, I've always thought I had it tough as an orphan but after hearing Gretta's story I realize now that my childhood wasn't really all that awful. Sure it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows either but...I understand her longing for someone to see her as a person worth loving and not someone to pity. I was worried that you guys would start hating me and tell me to leave because I'm such a basket case. She's the one convinced me to to find out how you guys really feel about me. That's why I wanted to say thanks, Conrad, for not hating me for the whole hitting you in the uh...you know." Blushing, I looked away and he just chuckled softly, carefully untangling Gretta's arms from around me and Conrad stood up, motioning for me to follow him.

Instead of the reply I was expecting, Conrad told me, "Actually you had every right to be angry with us Ash, but taking the time to come apologize to us for overreacting just proves what we already know. Even though this is a frightening experience for you you're trying to make the best of it. You're even willing to put your trust in people you hardly know for our protection and help. If anything I'm sorry we underestimated your strength and for not considering your feelings regarding the matter of the people who are currently after you. For the record though," Conrad smiled a little too brightly as he leaned down and playfully whispered in my ear, "Be grateful that you had the foresight not to slap either of us, because here in our world, that's a proposal for marriage. That's exactly how His Majesty and my younger brother got engaged."

I blinked, blushing even redder, "I'm sorry, what?"

"Don't think about it too much," Conrad laughed softly and smiled, leaning back up again. "Unlike my brother I'm sure His Eminence wouldn't hold you to it since he'd know for a fact it wasn't intentional. Then again he might be eager to take you up on that offer because you are a lovely young lady. Any man would be lucky to have you."

"What about you?" I asked before I could stop myself, "If I had slapped you instead of punched you in the groin, what would you have done?"

I was as taken aback by Conrad's answer as he was when he replied thoughtfully, "There was only one person in my life I could have seen myself sharing a future with, but now that future belongs to someone else and to be honest, I haven't thought about the prospect of marriage at all since then. I am first and formost a soldier after all. Laying down my sword isn't something I can see myself doing until I retire. Even then, my life belongs to my king and my country. If I cannot give all of my heart to anyone else, then it would be a disservice to the one who offered me their lives and their hearts as readily as my comrades. That's why if you had proposed to me...I doubt I would have accepted it because I know couldn't give you the kind of life or the love you would give me in return."


	19. A Soldier's Lament

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note (01/14/2018):** I was sort of inspired by Joan of Arc in this chapter so sorry if it doesn't make much sense, I'm just trying to explain the way Conrad has started looking at Ash and how he feels about her. Eventually he might realize he's falling for her, but again I haven't chosen the main love interest and really want to write about this subtle rivalry between Conrad and Sara since they're both impressed with Ash's willingness to adapt to all of this and her strength of will that makes her stand out among most of the women they've met in their lives. She's someone new, someone strong yet fragile at the same time, and Ash has this uncanny way of making them question what they want to get out of this whole business when it comes to finding the truth and protecting her. Does Conrad want to know to protect Yuri from a similar threat? Does Sara want to know so he can use her power in some way and finally have a companion who doesn't have anyone following her at her heels like Yuri's friends do? I doubt even they know what they want and Ash just wants to find the truth, get these creeps off her back, then figure out in the end if she even WANTS to go back to Earth at this point or leave it all behind.

* * *

Chapter 19: A Soldier's Lament

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Shori's POV

Maybe I was being a little cynical about it because honestly I didn't feel all that bad about Ken Murata getting a fist to the face, but having been left in the dark many times before by these guys just like Ash was, and feeling like I was the only one not getting some kind of inside joke, I couldn't really blame her for snapping like that. I could sympathize with how she must have been feeling. She was scared and angry at the same time which is never a good combo. I've felt that way too, more times then I care to admit...

I was surprised that even Conrad got caught up in her angry rant too, especially since Ash usually seems to be the most comfortable around him out of all of us. Sure my mom knows some of those self-defense moves too, which she has practiced on numerous occasions on my father, myself, and Yu-chan unfortunately, but Ash reacted so quickly, like she's actually been attacked before. Thankfully my mom has never had to actually use any of those self-defense moves on a robber or a stalker. Not that they'd really stand a chance anyway since my mom could easily take any creep down because she took fencing in college and could turn almost any object into a sword, metaphorically speaking of course.

It was different with Ash though, very different. The way she reacted earlier in such a quick and fiery way is only born from actually fearing for your life. Who knows, maybe Ash was more on edge then she let on and had yet to completely drop her guard and trust us to help her. All because back where she lived people have disappointed her so many times that her first reaction is _'if I'm not strong enough to hold my own, the one time I let myself rely on others, they're going to look out for themselves first and let me take the fall because I'm not their responsibility'_ or something like that.

I was still worried about my theory about her that I talked about with Conrad about how Ash could possibly be another half Shinzoku so I just couldn't get to sleep. That, and I was seriously doubting if I was going to be included in the search party going to visit this Cyrset place. Knowing my little brother he would want to keep me as far from possible danger as possible since they were more used to disguising him when they went off to human lands. I'd just blow their cover. But how was I ever going to get used to hiding who I was if they never let me go with them anywhere else in this world?

I could always try stowing away on their ship but that would probably result in disaster, as usual. Every time I've been over here I've messed things up and I was determined to do things by the book as much as possible to prove them wrong, all I needed was a chance. And again, how was I supposed to learn anything about this world if the only part I ever saw was this castle and some random base in the wilderness?

Nothing, that's what!

Worrying wasn't going to do me any good and this time, if Yuri wasn't going to include me I decided that as much as I'd hate it, I'm going to be a gracious big brother and go back home without a fuss. Provided of course they promised to actually keep me informed about the situation with the White Crows. Not sure how but, I really wanted them at least to include me in this somehow because I'm worried about Ash and all of this too.

I still had a bad feeling the White Crows were just being used again and were considered disposable to this Shinzoku noble as long as he got what he wanted in the end, whoever he was. After what happened with Janis, I dunno, I've always felt this odd sense of duty to look out for them because they're not the evil secret society we thought they were. I wanted to save them somehow even back then and give them a chance for a better life where those skills could be used to help people, not hurt them or raise tyrants like Ranjeel to the throne...

Yuri has his kingdom and subjects to worry about but when I think about my role, even when I do become the Demon King of the Earth there isn't much apart from the formal duties I'll have to perform to keep things running smoothly. Unlike here in this world there were no enemies I had to protect our fellow Demon's from, besides corrupt politicians at most. In fact besides Bob I'm pretty sure hardly anyone on Earth knows they're part of the Demon Tribe because the rest of us have normal lifespans there and no magical abilities whatsoever. Not normally anyway...

And that's what made Ash's situation so unusual to us because we're not sure if she is part of the Demon Tribe or not. For all we know she's from an extinct race that once existed on this side and is the only survivor of her people or like I told Conrad she might be another half-blood. She DOES have powers, strong ones too, and Ash even has this alternate form and a separate consciousness just like my brother does with his Demon King half.

From what I've heard though, the two times this other-self of hers has appeared she was reluctant to stay or interfere with Ash's life any more then was necessary and refused to answer any direct questions, urging us to discover the truth on our own. That's something else that's been puzzling me. Why would this other self go out of her way to do that? Does she want to make sure we care about Ash because of who she is now and not because of her past lives that tie her to this world? Or is the truth about her so dangerous that it's too risky to outright say it when we're being watched?

But if this Shinzoku guy already knows who she is, why should it matter if we know now as opposed to finding out later..? The only other reason I can think of is because Ash simply isn't ready to know and can't remember what her other self says anyway so it's better that she find the truth herself, and we're just along for the ride. Still, her other self has faith in us and admitted she was the one who saved Ash and sent her to us. All we could do know was help Ash as much as we could because the two of us are in the same boat, she doesn't know how things work here either. Unlike me she does have some idea. Honestly I feel kind of dumb for not thinking of half the stuff she did logically the first time I came here...

Well whatever the case may be, tomorrow was the moment of truth and from the looks of it our enemy didn't take the bait. Not that I really expected them to to be perfectly honest. I'm just sorry that Ash had to deal with those jerks making her head hurt. Why did they use such a spell anyway? Unless...unless they wanted to coax her into running away!

Realizing this and shooting straight up in bed I had half a mind to grab a guard or go tell someone to keep an even closer eye on Ash to make sure she didn't try to travel back to Earth on her own when I heard Conrad's voice outside my door. It sounded to me like he was talking to a very sleepy sounding Gretta. Curious about their conversation, I snuck over to my door and eased it open just long enough to hear the last few sentences-

"...I'm glad you're not mad at her Conrad, Ash was really upset and felt awful about what she did. Will she really be ok going away tomorrow? I'm going to miss her. She's like the big sister I never had," Gretta said, stifling another yawn as she held Conrad's hand and let him lead her back to Yuri's room after insisting she could walk on her own.

"I think she'll be alright, don't worry Gretta. I promise we'll take good care of her," Conrad assured her although he sounded a bit distracted. "If anything her display today proved that Ash can take care of herself in a tight spot as long as she's not up against armed assailants which is good to know. She's a fast learner so perhaps Berias would be willing to teach her some basic swordplay to expand her means of self-defense like I've been doing with His Majesty. I think it would help her feel safer if we armed her with a small dagger or something as well during the trip so that if we get separated she won't be tempted to rely on magic to save herself. We've already discussed among ourselves who should go, but, after today it's become a matter of who Ash trusts to look after her and not doubt her ingenuity and understanding of the situation again..."

"Eh?" Gretta mumbled, yawning again. "You never let Yuri bring a sword even though you've been training him so why is it different with Ash?"

Laughing softly, Conrad explained, "Well Gretta, it's because I prefer being His Highness's sword myself in place of arming him with one and not the other way around. I'm his bodyguard and Godfather after all so, I guess you could say I'm more involved with His Highness then I am with Ash and she seems capable of protecting herself if she has to and not worrying so much about doing them harm. She understands what Yuri does not, that there comes a time where it is necessary to hurt or kill another to preserve your own life once the other party has made the conscious decision to try and take yours. His magic usually wins the day anyway but Ash...she's different."

Their voices were growing distant now so since I really wanted to know why he was making such a strange face in the torchlight, I stepped out of my room and crept a little closer to hear what he had to say about Ash when he stopped in his tracks. Then to my astonishment Conrad found himself telling Gretta an old war story of his, sounding as though he was mostly talking to himself as he recalled those dark and bloody days as a soldier. And the way he compared Ash to his fellow comrades caught me by surprise, who knew he could feel this strongly about a girl we've only just met.

"Ash surges forward even though she's afraid and has this spirit in her eyes that reminds me of a soldier I once knew. In the war twenty years ago there was a young woman hidden in my unite who disguised herself as a man to prove her worthiness as much as the rest of us who only had half demon blood on the front lines. I never told a soul her secret, I didn't even confront her about it before the battle to tell her to flee like an honorable soldier or an honorable man should have. Honestly I was too preoccupied by my own problems to care one way or another if she fought or not. In my eyes, since she was a half-human just like the rest of us I believed she had as much of a right to choose her fate as we did. And if this was what she decide to do then who was I to stop someone so determined to make it to the battlefield along with the men she considered her brothers? But then...I remember the exact moment I saw her fight for the first time. The way her eyes were burning, so brightly and fiercely in the firelight the same way Ash's did when she rescued you, with conviction, with every ounce of courage she could muster, it was inspiring. And no matter what horrors she saw or how many wounds she sustained this young woman kept going, kept fighting until finally I saw her fall in place of a comrade. I only had enough time to pause when the enemies I was fighting thinned out to see her smile warmly as she handed her sword to him, telling him with her dying breath, _'You must live, it is the only way to prove that our blood does not define us, our actions today do. The truth does not change, only their perception of it. You know your heart, so keep fighting to prove that it beats for the sake of our people!_ _For the Demon Tribe!_ _'_ It wasn't long after that before her body joined so many others and was never found once the second platoon was sent forward to drive the remaining soldiers out. I never found out her real name either. But Ash reminds me of her. Maybe that's why I feel this strange sort of brotherly concern for Ash, I'm not entirely sure. Whatever the case may be I'd like to help see this through so that Ash can rest easy and return to where she belongs. In a much safer world. A world that the brave young woman in my unit never had a chance to see over here in ours..."

As expected Gretta only sort of half heard his story and Conrad just smiled to himself and easily carried her the rest of the way to Yuri's room to put her to bed. One thing was clear though. At least now I knew Conrad was going with the search party. The only question now though was who else was going?

Was Yuri going too and sticking his nose into something potentially dangerous? Or was he stating behind for once to let Conrad do his thing? With nothing else better to do, I decided to head to bed and try to get a little sleep and find out what the plan was in the morning, one way or another.


	20. That's Not The Point

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note (01/15/2018):** I'm finding it interesting that when I update this story I get lots of views but no reviews. Clearly you guys are reading it but, it'd be nice to get some actual feedback you know? I don't like being one of those people that beg for subscribers or followers but at the same time reviews are a great moral booster. I'd even take the whole _"good job, update soon"_ stuff at this point. Either way I'm glad at least the views show me that people are still reading this fanfic so that will have to be enough I suppose. Also, I had a rough day in general so sorry if I come across here as depressed or needy, I'm just saying that I miss seeing reviews in my email that's all...

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Chapter 20: That's Not The Point

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Ash's POV

By the time Geisila got back from wherever she went earlier, she performed another brief examination on me before giving me some medicine so I could sleep through the pain in my head as a result of that stupid tracking spell or whatever. As a result I slept in the infirmary all night long, eventually waking up to the sound of rustling when the maid came back to change the sheets on the other beds. Since she was there she offered to escort me to the dining room where the others were waiting and I agreed, though I hadn't changed out of my first new set of cloths. Oh well, I'm sure they'd let me change after breakfast right?

As soon as I remembered I still had Murata to apologize to some of the nervous butterflies in my stomach reappeared but I took a minute to recompose myself before the maid opened the door for me. Ignoring me for a moment she informed them that breakfast would be served in a few minutes then bowed to Yuri and myself before leaving. I blinked, wondering why she had bowed to me too until I realized that it was because I was an honored guest. Sometimes I totally forgot about that because I felt more like a nuisance then a guest...

"Good morning Ash, did you sleep alright last night?" Yuri asked, looking a bit nervous. "Conrad told me you were suffering from a migraine and went to Geisila in the middle of the night. Are you feeling any better?"

I nodded and then stepped further into the room, stopping myself from hiding in a corner under everyone's carefully blank stares. "I'm fine, thanks for asking Yuri. How about Murata? Is he ok? I don't see him..."

"Oh, he already ate and wanted to check in on something back at the Tomb of the Great One," Yuri replied, and after hearing Murata still wasn't here my shoulders slumped. I had really been hoping to suck it up and apologize for yesterday but I guess he-

Seeing my troubled expression, I was surprised when Conrad's older brother Gwendal spoke up and said, "In case you're still worried about yesterday don't be, His Eminence is not angry with you in the least. He asked us to apologize for him not being here to tell you that himself but he realized something about the tracking spell used on you yesterday and went to see if there really is a way to _'block the signal'_ as you put it. Speaking for myself I would like to apologize as well. We decided to act on our own without your permission to used you as bait, not thinking of how our actions might appear thoughtless and unfair to you. It won't happen again."

Relaxing a bit, I smiled, "Thanks but it's really ok. I'm the one who overreacted. Besides, if Conrad already told you guys about our meeting last night then he told you what I found out. Right Conrad?" I asked, turning to Conrad who nodded before glancing at everyone in turn and spoke.

"Yes that's right. And quite frankly I'm surprised we didn't think of this possibility before now when it's so obvious. I'm just grateful that you managed to figure out their plan before falling right into their trap. This proves once again that you aren't as helpless as we once foolishly believed so from now on, we'll work together with you rather then for you. I've informed Berias and King Saralegui about this as well and they're making preparations now for the journey back to Shimaron territory. Once everyone arrives we'll finalize the group accompanying you because unfortunately we can't delay this any longer since King Saralegui's absence will start raising unwanted questions if he remains here too much longer."

Taking a seat at the table next to Gwendal and Gretta, I sighed deeply, "So Sara's not here either huh? Figures. I was hoping to get this all off of my chest before we leave since I really went off on you guys yesterday. I know you're trying to help but all I did was snap and...do something really unlady-like. I couldn't help it though, I was so mad and my head felt like it was about to crack open so I-"

"Stop. You're working yourself up again over nothing," Gwendal told me, giving me a meaningful look. "There's no point in dwelling on what's already over and done with. You didn't inflict any serious damage and if anything you've shown us that we can trust you to defend yourself without relying on magic just as Conrad says. If you can do that it will make this much easier once you depart because it'll be more difficult for the enemy to track our movements, especially if His Eminence manages to redirect their attention to a decoy or whatever he's planning to have Lady Ulrike do to mask your presence. Conrad has even requested that I arm you with a small dagger so you can defend yourself, but I'd like to see if you're comfortable with the idea before I have one brought to you."

I'll be honest, I was a little nervous about the idea of being armed with a potentially lethal object when I remembered that with my magic I myself WAS potentially lethal. And in the end if I really needed to defend myself I'd rather have the dagger and not use it then need one and be without. Plus I really didn't want to try using magic again until I had a better idea of what it could do or how prone it was to going out of control if I got too emotional like Shori says his did the first time he used it.

With all of that in mind I agreed, "If he thinks I really need one I don't mind. It's not like I have to actually kill anyone with it and as long as I'm careful a dagger's not all that dangerous. It's better then being a walking, talking, fire hazard if I can help it. At least it's not a gun either."

"A gun?" Wolfram asked, curious about what I was talking about. "Is that a weapon back on Earth?"

Glancing over at Yuri who shifted uncomfortably, I nodded but said, "Well yeah but you don't want to hear about that, it's not like you have anything like that here right? This place is a full on RPG fantasy with swords and armor and magic. Speaking of which, I have a few questions about your world I'd like to know before we leave. Or I guess decide WHO is leaving with me," following Conrad's example, I looked at everyone in turn and smiled, "Thanks again for all of this, I really appreciate it. I promise I'll try harder next time not to get too mad if you do something that's meant to help me. So, question 1!"

Feeling a child-like excitement wash over me and grateful that my change of subject worked since Yuri seemed uncomfortable about talking about weapons from our world, I began listing off questions mostly about the sort of creatures that actually existed here vs the mythical ones that never did back on Earth. I was especially interested in the existence of fairies and unicorns and yes, dragons of course. Gretta got really excited too when I asked about fairies and claimed that she's actually seen one but Yuri later informed me that the fairy Gretta saw was actually the Great One in his miniature form he used to conserve energy. I snickered at the idea of him being so small and even pictured him in bunny ears holding an oversized watch like the White Rabbit in Alice in Wonderland. I certainly felt like I was in Wonderland sometimes when I saw those Fly Bone guys in the sky overhead.

We were halfway through breakfast when Sara and Berias arrived and told us the ship was ready whenever we were. He openly expressed how impressed he was by my display which only made me blush, god I was NEVER going to live that down. After that, Berias and Conrad talked about the idea of giving me a dagger and some basic fighting lessons with a blade which he agreed to and checked with Sara to see if it was alright. I was surprised when Sara actually seemed against the idea, insisting that Berias would provide more then enough protection. He agreed to let me carry a dagger -well gee thanks for that at least- but Sara asked for them to reconsider giving me sword fighting lessons since it would give people the wrong idea about me. Sara wasn't entirely wrong but, we could always train at night or in secret and it wasn't like I needed to know every technique in the book, just enough not to get horribly murdered by someone more experienced.

"I know how to use a knife already, it's really not that big of a deal Sara. I'll only be taught the bare minimum and Berias can still do his thing. And if you're so worried about me not looking lady-like I can train with them at night or crazy early in the morning. I was just starting to get used to waking up early to feed the horses at my foster dad's ranch after all," I shrugged, sounding disinterested so that Sara wouldn't fight me so hard on this since I thought the training was a good idea. As usual I'd rather be prepared and not need to be then- yeah you get the idea. "Swing to slice jab to...well stab. There, done! I said this before but it's not like I'll have to actually hurt anyone to the point of them dying because of me, if I can keep them off of me long enough to get away then it's all good. Berias and whoever else is coming can still do their job and I don't have to go out looking for trouble. Didn't I already prove I'm not that reckless after I found out the bad guys were in fact trying to frighten me into running back home?"

"No, if anything it proved that you're just as emotional as Yuri and that can be very dangerous," Sara retorted, setting his teacup down a little louder then he should have. "Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should. As amusing as yesterday's display was I'd rather not put you in a position where you'd have to use that technique if I can help it..." placing his hands over mine after reaching across the table, his eyes bore into mine and he said earnestly, "We just want you to be safe and if you feel the need for added protection I can assemble more soldiers. Whatever keeps your mind at ease, I'll make sure it happens. I felt so helpless yesterday when you were suffering in front of me, I'd rather not repeat the experience. But ultimately it's up to you and if you really want to train with one of them then I'll allow it. That doesn't mean I have to like it though."

Raising an eyebrow, I smirked and called him out on his little ploy by saying, "Nice try playing the guilt-trip card on me but it won't work. Don't think you can pull that gooey sweet talk with me forever. I'm not some twitter-painted maiden ready to subject herself to being the damsel in distress the prince has to save." I pat his cheek a few times before pulling my hands free and crossing my arms, "I suppose I don't really need sword training if I'll only have a dagger with me. At least for now I'm ok with skipping the lessons," glancing over at Conrad, I blushed slightly and mouthed a quick _'sorry'_ before distracting myself by finishing the rest of my tea and picking up my plate out of habit and turning to take it over to the sink.

I stopped, realizing what I'd been doing and with a sigh I set my plate back down and sat in my seat again. Wow, I guess part of me really did miss the normal morning routine of eating breakfast, putting the dishes away, feeding the horses, marking off that I'd done it before grabbing my backpack and driving to school. Aw man, even if I do manage to make it home they're going to kill me for losing the car and making them worry, well once they got over the shock that I'm still alive.

"Is something the matter?" Berias asked, wondering why I was acting so sheepish all of a sudden.

"Sort of, I just realized it's been almost a week since..." I couldn't bring myself to say it but they all knew what I meant, I could see it in their eyes.

My reaction was perfectly normal, but I hated it all the same. I was feeling homesick. Despite all of the major things that have happened the past few days I was pretty good at adapting because of how often I was moved from house to house, family to family, so part of me had gone into auto-pilot with the habits I'd gotten from my previous home. My morning habits were especially memorable since I was usually an early bird and it was never long before I was reminded that I wasn't in the same house and that the rules were different there. Only this time, I had a whole world full of new rules. And I was going to have to learn them all if I hoped to last very long on my own if and when it ever came to that.

"Hey Sara?" I asked, earning a puzzled expression in return.

"Yes?"

"Since you don't like the idea of me learning sword fighting then...how about some history lessons? Conrad pointed out to me last night that if I had slapped either of them, in this country that's how you purpose. Since you're so worried about me blending in it might help to know that sort of thing. That and I don't know anything about the currency you used to pay for my clothes yesterday, either way I could really use a distraction right about now so I don't get sucked into feeling homesick like I almost did just now. Would you mind if we did that instead of sword lessons?"

"Wow, someone who is actually interested in learning history! I knew there was something I liked about her," Shori laughed, elbowing his little brother, "Why couldn't you have been this productive when you became the Demon King? Gunter says you STILL doze off during history lessons!"

Yuri rolled his eyes, "Well you try keeping two sets of history lessons in your brain and not mixing them up THEN come talk to me about getting your brain overloaded."

Laughing at their classic display of brotherly bickering, I smiled at Sara again, my smile faltering when I noticed how intently he was looking at me. He was smiling back at me but for some reason his eyes sparkled as they met mine, as if my suggestion was the best idea he'd ever heard. Even Gunter joined in after trying to explain to Yuri the importance of knowing your history before rounding on me and offering some reading material for us to borrow...

That reminded me that while I could speak the language I might not be able to read it so after that we all started talking about the things I should be learning while I'm here, including the sword lessons eventually, etiquette, reading and writing, basically a lot of the things Yuri had to learn when he first came here. I felt really good that we'd moved on from yesterday's embarrassing display and they were actively including me in their conversation.

Eventually Murata came back and I was able to aplogize properly which also came as a huge relief. I really felt like we could start over from there and soon after, the conversation turned serious again. It was time to decide who was going and who was staying. And maybe it was just me but Shori looked worried but tried to hide it behind a mask of indifference. I knew exactly how he felt, feeling excluded and like you were in your own little world that people talked about but never pulled you out of to include in the conversation.

That's when I called for their attention and asked, "Hey Yuri, if it's ok with you, can Shori come too? He knows a lot about those White Crows too and maybe some of the surviving members will remember him and we can try talking to them. Besides, he wants to learn about this world as much as I do. Please?"

Yuri looked shocked by my request, everyone did, even Shori who cleared his throat and after adopting a formal tone he turned to his brother and said, "Look Yu-chan, I didn't come here to step on anyone's toes but she's right. I'm tired of being left on the sidelines and I want to help! If I can learn something here too to make things easier for us in the future then that's what I want to do! I told you before, I feel stupid for messing up all those times before when I came here either by accident or by tricking you into bringing me. That being said though, if you don't plan on bringing me with you then I already decided to head back home so I'm not in your way and you guys can do what you have to to help Ash. In fact, as grateful as I am that she's asking if you'll include me I'd much rather let you guys focus on dealing with this creep that's sending the White Crows after her then worrying about me too." Looking at me, Shori gave me a meaningful look as well that mirrored Gwendal's and said, "It's ok Ash, I don't mind being left behind this time. But I do have one request if you do run into any White Crows in that village."

Wondering what he wanted me to do, I asked him, "And what's that?"

Closing his eyes and adjusting his glasses up further on his nose, Shori replied, "Depending on whether or not you get the chance to talk to any of them, tell them that if they ever want to change their ways, I'll vouch for them," looking at his little brother, who seemed to already know what he was getting at, Shori continued earnestly, "If the guy they're working for now really is just using them in exchange for protection then I want them to know that even though their old leader Janis didn't make it I'd like to save them from a similar fate if I can. I don't want to see them used and then left to die again! I was there when Ranjeel attacked their base, I tried to save them but I wasn't strong enough. If anyone can help them turn their lives around, my brother can, he's done it plenty of times before. Even a certain other King I know has started changing because of him whether he realizes it or not. I mean he did come to us for help when you appeared and didn't just try hiding what's going on from us this time. Just let them know I'm on their side unless they do something really unforgivable which they haven't and shouldn't just because that guy told them to! I mean holding Gretta hostage was wrong and that guy wasn't even a Crow! They should already know whoever this guy is, he's bad news..."


	21. The Journey Begins

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note (01/23/2018):** Hey guys, sorry it's been awhile since I updated this. I've been distracted by two of my other stories, one of them that has a character that's similar to Ash but not quite. Either way, we're back and I hope you guys will show pity on me and write some reviews. It's been quiet lately. I know you don't have to review this but again it's a great moral booster and a show of support. And everyone likes to know their work is appreciated am I right? Also, I haven't skimmed over the previous chapters but I'm assuming Ash hasn't met Yosak yet. If she has please let me know and I'll fix this chapter later.

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Chapter 21: The Journey Begins

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Ash's POV

While we waited for Ken to come back after he left once again to _'check on something'_ before we boarded the ship, and yes I know he's Japanese and you call them by their last name first with a prefix attached unless you were really close to them, but hey, in my head it was easier to use his first name. After all, everyone called Yuri by Yuri except for him which I had to wonder why sometimes. Weren't they best friends? Or was Ken trying to maintain a professional distance from his friend because he didn't want to be relied on too much as a result of having the soul of this Great Wiseman guy...?

Anyway, Lady Celli provided me with the last few things I needed and since I liked the red outfit I'd chosen so much, she even had three more copies of it made practically overnight. I asked her how she managed that but she only winked and flipped her golden hair as she responded, "A woman has her ways, especially one who was the previous Demon Queen."

I didn't bother questioning it much after that and was grateful that everything else I needed was ready. I was sad knowing my old cloths were gone but that was one less thing I could get depressed over I guess. Either way, I made sure I thanked everyone for what they've done for me, especially Gretta since her sincerity and honesty helped me find my courage again when it was overshadowed by my doubts and fears. We even promised to write once I learned how. Although that might take awhile since to be perfectly honest I wasn't sure what I was planning to do after we investigated this village...

I had a few ideas of course but I'm sure my lovely new friends here would have none of it, especially since I was being targeted by a powerful man and an equally stealthy and cunning group of Ex-White Crows. Whatever came of this, they had already offered to protect me since I was obviously someone of importance either because of this power of mine or something else that involved my past either as one of those past lives they kept going on about or from when I was a baby.

That one memory I saw was our only clue. Well, besides the stuff that would-be-kidnapper told us. A building set ablaze, hooded figures chasing us, and the man who saved me from them who was saved in turn when my power brought us to Earth in the first place. Sure, I say it's my power but if you ask me it still felt like someone else's half the time because of that other consciousness inside of me.  
It still scared me to think I could become someone else without realizing it and essentially lose any memories of what happened while I was like that. Yuri told me not to worry too much about it since he has had similar experiences and because this other me wasn't a bad person. In fact, every time she appeared it was to help me in some way or because at least last time she was dragged to the forefront of my mind by part of that tracking spell.

Still, I was looking forward to the distraction of history lessons during the trip and I felt good about the group chosen to come with me or vice versa I guess since I felt like the one tagging along in some ways. Everyone here knew each other and had stories all their own. I've heard about a few of them but since this world was so new to me I couldn't even fathom half of the things they told me about. In the end we settled on Conrad, Yuri, Shori, and someone named Yosak whom I had yet to meet.

Ken deigned to stay behind for several reasons. For one thing he had a history with the White Crows too but it wasn't necessarily a good one and for another he wanted to keep an eye on home base as it were and actively work on disguising my aura so my stalkers couldn't use my newly awakened power to their advantage as far as tracking me went. That's why since yesterday they've been working on enchanting an amulet for me designed for that purpose made from some kind of special stone that wasn't Esoteric or Demon-ish. I didn't like saying demonic because nobody here is bad, they just got stuck with a mean nickname in my opinion because people were scared of their magic and the fact that they aged more slowly then normal people. I'll admit when I heard how old some of them were my jaw dropped but that didn't mean I was scared of them, if anything I was in awe of how fit they were at their old age.

Once everything was packed onto the ship all there was left to do was wait for Ken to come back to see us off and hand me the necklace. I still felt bad about punching him, especially after seeing the bandage but they assured me that members of the demon tribe heal faster then most. That's another thing that's been bothering me. It's been a week now since I first wound up here and my wounds, as superficial as they were were gone, I didn't even have a scar on me to show for it. Geisila made note of how quickly I healed too but we figured it had something to do with my strong magic. Still, what was I going to do if it turns out that I'M not human? Does it change who I am or more importantly how long I'll live? If I was going to outlive everyone I care about, was there any point in going back to Earth? Then again, Yuri, Shori, Ken, and Conrad all had human blood and of the four of them only three were aging normally and those same three lived most of their lives on Earth so maybe it wasn't so much about how much Demon Tribe blood they had but where they lived...?

"Ash? Ash, can you hear me?" Shori asked, waving a hand in front of my face.

I blinked and jerked my head up to look at him from my perch dangling my feet over the edge of the pier and staring idly at the waves we'd soon be sailing across.

Leaning back on my elbows then flat on my back I sighed, "Tell me something Shori, do you think we're doing the right thing? Going to this village I mean? I have a really bad feeling about all this and I'm not sure if it's all just because of the nervous butterflies forming in my stomach."

Sitting next to me and leaning back too, just not as far, Shori replied, "I think we're doing the only thing we can do really since we don't have any other leads. It's obvious you have power, and this guy wants it badly enough he sent people to Earth to find you, sent a mercenary to find and coax you into using that power, and chose to use a spell he knew would hurt you. That to me proves that whoever this guy is he's not joking around. He wants to capture you, badly, and if we don't figure out why soon we won't be ready for whatever he pulls next."

I sighed and closed my eyes, listening to the sound of waves and the hustle and bustle of people going about their lives and sailors preparing for their departures whether they were on our ship or one of the other ones pulled up to port. "You know what I don't get? If this psycho knew about me from back when I was a baby, why did he wait until now to come after me? You would think he-"

"Ash! Shori! Murata's back!" Yuri suddenly called to us when Ken rode up in a carriage accompanied by Lady Celli again, which surprised me. That is until I figured out she had given him some tips on making this necklace actually look nice and being the refined woman she was wasn't about to let me leave wearing anything less then something that defined my beauty. I blushed a little at the thought and followed Shori over to where they were.

I wasn't sure what to say when Ken handed me the box except, "Thank you for doing this for me, it must've taken you all night to get this finished in time. I feel bad we made you rush to get it done in time. So make sure you get some sleep ok?"

He gave me an odd look then waved his hand dismissively and he laughed, "What this little thing? Nah it didn't take that long at all really. I've made something like this before but to be honest I needed a refresher on the technique. When Lady Celli heard what I was up to though she insisted on changing the design several times, I just couldn't win against her when it came to functionality vs fashion."

Pouting a bit, Lady Celli put a hand on her hip and reasoned, "Honestly one would think His Eminence had more of an eye for style since he's been both men and women before in his past lives. A shame really his feminine side doesn't shine through more often. I couldn't even convince him to enter that beauty pageant I hosted last year! Yosak won of course but my Wolf and His Highness looked absolutely stunning!"

"Mother! Don't tell people such unnecessary things!" Wolfram huffed, flushing with embarrassment.

In response to this I couldn't help but laugh a little, "I'm assuming by that you mean they cross-dressed as girls? I wish I could have been there to see that. I bet you looked cute in frills."

"Pfft, you should see him in his nightgown," Yuri whispered in my ear which only made me laugh more and then Wolfram of course came over because his ears must have started burning and he demanded to know what Yuri said to me.

It was funny to watch them bicker like an old married couple and secretly I was grateful that this helped lift some of the nervous tension in the air I was feeling. While they were busy with that I opened the small box in my hand and gasped a little when I saw it. It was a simple red prism shaped crystal on a gold chain with a wing pendant on either side of it. I wasn't expecting something so nice looking, especially something they had made in one night since this stone had to be cut and enchanted right away or the power would leak out of it according to the brief explanation Ken gave us before he left for the Tomb of the Great One again.

This type of crystal or whatever stone it was made of was rare too so this gift was nothing to sneeze at. I almost didn't want to put it on out of reverence for the beautiful think I'd just been so thoughtfully given. Noticing my hesitation, Lady Celli glided over to me and put it on my neck before I had much time to protest, then she gave me a meaningful look as she said.

"Now my dear, I know I got a little carried away making it look the part of something a young lady of importance should wear but remember this, it's useless if not worn at all times. I didn't just aid with the design, I also helped him enchant it because I too want to be sure you're safe on this journey," brushing some of my hair aside and looking down at me warmly, she added, "I'm not sure why but you remind me of someone I once knew. She had the same eyes as you do. At any rate, don't put too much pressure on yourself to find answers in this one place alright? There are many avenues we can take if this one doesn't work out. Don't let what you find define who you are, since the circumstances that led you to the other world and back are only a part of your story. Be true to yourself, that is all I ask."

I met her gaze and nodded, a familiar fire igniting in my eyes, "I will, I promise. Thank you, Celli, for looking out for me too. Those three are lucky to have you for a mom."

Smiling she laughed, "I wonder about that some times with how much Wolfram complains about me coddling him!"

Glancing over at Wolfram who was still arguing and chasing Yuri around, giving him an earful about not getting any funny ideas just because he was staying behind for once to perform his own investigation along with Gwendal, Gunter, and Ken who were all staying behind, I smiled too, "That's very typical of the youngest child I suppose. I've had my fair share of would-be siblings and the youngest always have a knack for complaining about being spoiled when actually they get upset when they're ignored. I wonder if that's why Wolfram hoards all of Yuri's attention?"

"Who knows," Shori shrugged from beside me. "For an 83 year old he sure acts like a little kid sometimes."

I nodded, noticing that Ken was busy trying to break up their argument so we could get going. He looked a bit exasperated himself, which reminded me that despite having such an old and important soul, he was just a teenager just like me where it counted so I decided to go over and help. Meanwhile, Berias, Sara, and Conrad were all watching our display from the sidelines. Although Conrad of course came over to say hello to his mother briefly before joining our efforts. Of course there was another set of eyes on us I wasn't aware of but behind his genuinely amused smirk, something in his gut told him I wasn't all that I appeared to be. He was right of course, I was something different from what they've encountered before, but we wouldn't find that out until a certain man appeared and revealed my true identity...


	22. Just Another Change

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note (01/26/2018):** Apologies for the short chapter, I've been meaning to update this and planned to after work but, lets just say work today took a lot out of me and I didn't have the energy to write nearly as much as I wanted to. I'll make up for it in the next chapter hopefully. Please leave a review if you like this one though despite it's short length. I might expand it later before I write the next full chapter for this...

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Chapter 22: Just Another Change

" _The measure of intelligence is the ability to change." ~ **Albert Einstein**_

* * *

Ship: Berias's POV

I was rather surprised when Gunter Von Christ wasn't chosen as part of our traveling party. He was already known to be King Yuri's personal tutor and would have made a much better teacher then myself since to be frank I'm a man of few words, so it was odd that he chose to stay behind. Surely he would have been a better in instructed Lady Ashlynn of our world's history as well as in the basics of combat since Lord Weller was instructed by the same man in his youth...

Even so, it was agreed that His Highness and I would teach Lady Ashlynn what she needed to know in the human lands. Meanwhile King Yuri and Lord Weller would do the same with Lord Shori while the remaining member of our group, the spy Yosak, kept an eye out for any suspicious activity while we handled the rest.

I only knew a little about this man since we've only met briefly that time when King Yuri was invited to Small Shimaron. He was a close personal friend of Lord Weller though so I for one trusted his judgment and took him at his word. As for Saralegui, he was all too happy to have the young lady's attention all to himself. I've recently noticed how irritable he become on occasion when he saw Lady Ashlynn getting along with Lord Weller and the others so easily. Especially Lord Weller in particular.

I could be mistaken, but she seemed have developed quite a bond with him in a short amount of time. At first we attributed this to her initial relief to when Lady Ashlynn found someone who spoke her language, but, it soon became apparent that there was more to it then that...

Naturally, I believe that Lord Weller has an openness that men and women alike are drawn to. Perhaps it is because of King Yuri especially however I have seen the warmth in his gaze and the way Lord Well is one of the first to reassure and it solidifies my belief that he sees something in her as well, though even he might not be aware of it. I can only say this because I'm watching from the outside and I admire Lord Weller as a soldier and a fellow guardian over his own king.

Drawn out of my reverie when Saralegui cleared his throat, I asked, "Is there something you need Your Highness?"

"I've finished an outline of what basics we should go over with Ash, would you mind looking them over?" Saralegui asked formally, holding a pile of papers deftly in one hand, as if he was performing his normal duties back at the castle as per usual.

I nodded in response and wordlessly took the papers he offered me. First of all of course we thought it best to see how much if any of our alphabet Lady Ashlynn knew now that her memories were unsealed of what her soul already knew by heart in the distant past, if any at all. After that came a few other basics such as etiquette and the value of local currency. From what I've seen she is a sharp-minded young lady which is perhaps another reason why Saralegui was finding it hard to keep his eyes off of her.

Since I've known Saralegui the longest, I understand that he tends to get...infatuated with anyone with a different mindset then most others. Because he wishes to surpass his father, the late King Gilbert, Saralegui goes to great lengths to ensure that he stands out and stands above others while simultaneously creating his secret inner circle of those Saralegui feels are _'worthy'_ of his attention. King Yuri, Lord Weller, and now Lady Ashlynn all fall under this category because they have their uses to him but what Saralegui fails to realize is that ever so slowly he has begun to see people as less an asset as they are an ally or dare I even hope to say his friends...

One never sees the changes in themselves so much as the others around them do, especially those who have watched over them as long as I have. Saralegui genuinely cares about this girl in his own way and fails to understand why he is prone to narrowing his gaze at others when they make her smile. He is still learning what friendship means, but, this could be the beginning of something unexpected between these two. That is, if Lord Well doesn't realize his feelings first.

My only concern is Saralegui's happiness so if I must act on my own to see to it that they can spend more leisure time together then it will be done. I have been tasked to watching over her anyway in light of recent events. And in my eyes, it is in King Yuri that Saralegui will discover the value of a lasting friendship as well as the bloodless way King Yuri fights his battles to make this into a better world.

I believe in his world. I've seen a glimpse of it through the love that bloomed between my older sister and the young King Gilbert. And if Lady Ashlynn turns out to be someone born between two races that were once at odds, perhaps she will become a part of that dream too. Little did any of us know then that this young woman was about to shatter all of our beliefs about what a miracle could look like, not to mention just how many mysteries still governed this world of ours even to this day.

* * *

Ship: Ash's POV

"I guess he's still going over lesson plans huh?" I sighed, already bored to tears even though we've been at see for less then two hours while I leaned my back against the railing.

"He might have a lot of official paperwork to catch up on too. I know I'm going to," Yuri groaned while glancing over at Shori who was already taking his own education seriously and was sparring with Conrad.

Unlike me, Shori had already been taking some sword lessons beforehand and were just continuing them now. He had a few of the basics down but Conrad had to remind him to either be more offensive or less depending on the moves he used. Yuri and I were curious at first but it got old quickly. Now we were just standing there in an awkward silence until I couldn't take it anymore and suggested.

"Hey Yuri, why don't we play a game?" I asked, giving him a playful look.

He looked at me in surprise before it was replaced with a curious look, "I guess. What do you have in mind?"

Propping myself up on a barrel, I crossed my legs and replied, "I mostly played this online but it's called _'would you rather,'_ where I ask a question you tell me which option you'd pick and explain why. Have you ever played it?"

Yuri nodded, admitting, "Yeah a few times but usually that was only when it was raining and we could hold baseball practice."

"You play baseball?" I asked.

"Yup, in fact I'm team captain," Yuri smirked, holding his hands out as if holding a bat. "Nothing beats the thrill of running to home base so it bums me out when we have to miss practice. When I came over here I missed the game too until I found out Conrad has been teaching people here about the game and we even have a stadium in the Great Demon Kingdom. It doesn't have anything fancy like the ones on Earth but I feel at home on the field. What about you? Do you play any sports?"

Laughing, I joked, "So now we've skipped straight to just quizzing each other huh? Ok. Well, I've tried a few sports but with the way things have been most of my life never staying with one family long I've pretty much given up on anything long term. I'm not sure if you can call it a sport but I love horseback riding. It's the closest thing I've felt to flying. I know there are horse based sports but I'm not so much into that as I am just riding and feeling free, you know? Like I can leave my worries in the dust. That's why I was really hoping that my last foster family would work out since they own a horse ranch. They've certainly lasted the longest. Until..." I trailed off and left the rest unsaid, sighing.

Elbowing my shoulder, Yuri smiled, "Hey, we're going to get things worked out, I promise. Then you'll be home in no time and maybe we can swap emails. That is, if my mom doesn't find out I've made my first friend-girl over on this side that actually takes the time to chat once in awhile. Wolfram is already insanely jealous but he's like that if a butterfly so much as landed on my finger! I swear, Wolfram gets jealous of anything and everything when it comes to me."

Rolling my eyes a little at his romantic dilemma, I elbowed him back and said, "You want my advice? If two guys being engaged is anything like most relationships then it's important to compromise and work together to solve your problems. And you both need to be ok with agreeing to disagree on certain things without making the other feel bad. Common courtesy is key. But enough about that, do you still want to play _'would you rather'_ or would you _'rather not?'_ " I laughed at my own joke but stopped when Yuri looked like he was actually taking my advice very seriously.

"You know, even though I saw you take down Conrad with my own eyes it's hard to believe just how well you're taking all of this," Yuri said seriously, waving his hand out in front of us just as a certain duo rounded the corner to regroup with us. "When I wound up here, I was totally oblivious at first to what was happening. And even when I finally did kind of get the gist of things everything seemed so different then what I was used to. And yeah you've had a rough time too but you got over the weirdness much faster then I did. How did you manage that?"

Caught off guard by his question I replied honestly, "It's probably harder for you since you're not used to sudden changes like I am. You learn to readjust yourself quickly when it feels like everyone has let you down or you're bracing yourself for that moment. This is just another sudden life change for me. Maybe that's why? I really don't know anymore." I closed my eyes, listening to the waves and the soft clink of metal as Shori and Conrad continued their mock battle, and continued, "When I'm here, breathing this air, smelling the sea, hearing the gulls, it feels like a part of me has finally come back home. The thought of that scares me a little. How can I feel something so strongly when usually, I stop myself before I start feeling like...finally...this could be my forever home? I'm not sure if I'm ready to let go of my safety net just yet Yuri. I know this is all real and I have some connection to this world but I have to face all of this rationally or else I'll get overwhelmed by the fact that I've traveled who knows how far from Earth not knowing if I'll ever go back or if by the end of this quest for answers, if I'll want to anymore."


	23. Back So Soon?

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

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Chapter 23: Back So Soon?

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Ship: Ash's POV

Sara thinks I don't know he heard part of what I told Yuri but I did, it was written all over his face. At least until he carefully hid his surprise and seamlessly slipped into our conversation after Yuri told him a simplified version of what the question game _'would you rather'_ was. He sounded intrigued by the idea, saying it sounded like a good exercise for critical thinking which yeah I guess depending on the kind of questions you asked it could be. After that Sara worked his charm on Yuri and requested to steal me away so we could start our first lesson.

"A shame you couldn't bring some of your work with you as well Yuri, I don't envy how much will be there upon your return," Sara winced sympathetically for dramatic effect.

Yuri laughed nervously in response before all of us noticed that Conrad and Shori had stopped sparring when the latter hissed in pain, dropping his sword. Worried, we all rushed over to see what was wrong. _He must have gotten cut, I hope it's not too deep,_ I thought, kneeling down beside Shori when he sagged to his knees clutching the wound.

"Are you alright Shori?" Conrad asked, sounding troubled. "Forgive me, I was certain you would have been able to parry that blow. Why didn't you tell me sooner you were so tired?"

"I'm fine, it's nothing. I can keep going," Shori hissed through his teeth which pointed to him being the exact opposite.

Yuri was about to open his mouth to tell his older brother off for not being more careful when he glanced down and noticed I was glowing again. I didn't even notice it myself, I was too busy wordlessly lifting Shori's hand away from the wound by his wrist and dropping it. He didn't protest, especially not after noticing I was glowing softly too like gentle embers or someone with their back to the sun.

"Ash, what are you..." Sara began quietly though the sparkle in his eyes was unmistakable to Conrad who happened to look up at him as he spoke; he was wondering if I had unconsciously shifted into my other self and eagerly wanted to see more of my power. To be honest I couldn't tell you, I was sort of in a trance but I was aware of what I was doing. Again it was sort of like I was sleepwalking or felt slightly detached from myself.

Holding my other arm out as if calling a hawk, a small flame swirled around my skin until it gathered at my wrist and a small reddish gold bird appeared that was in fact no bigger then a common sparrowhawk. In fact it looked a lot like one except for the fact that it was solid gold, or perhaps a brilliant copper caught in the glow of an open flame, its eyes glowed, and it had a long flowing tail similar to the larger form it had back when everyone first saw it in the Tomb of the Great One.

Like any normal bird it flapped its wings restlessly on my arm before following my unspoken order to land on Shori's wounded arm where it curiously examined the wound and made the most beautiful sound any of us had ever heard and bursting into flame and flew through his arm. They gasped in surprise when his wound glowed white hot for a split second then was gone in an instant.

That's when, in words that weren't my own, my other self smiled and said with an amused tone, "Honestly, it's as if this is the first time you've actually seen a spirit actually manifest to assist in quickening the healing process. Where there is light, there is life, and the light of the sun touches all in this world equally," growing sad, she added, "Forgive me, it seems that I could not resist appearing to remind you of the lesson that only your king seems to remember." Her gaze turned to Yuri who shifted uncomfortably and blushed which only caused her to laugh softly. "No need to be so shy, I mean that only in the highest respect. Now then, if that is all then I should give Ashlynn control again as I'm sure she will be unhappy that I came without permission. Then again...I suppose this will not be the last time I am called before the end."

Closing our eyes, the glow began to fade but then, Yuri snapped out of his stupor and grabbed my shoulder and asked her earnestly, "Wait! Who are you? If you know what's going on with Ash please tell us. Maybe then we don't have to expose her to danger anymore and she can go back home. If you really care about her then-"

Shrugging him off, she stood and narrowed her gaze at him then at everyone else in turn as she replied with all of the authority of a queen and declared, "Telling you of my name would be pointless, as there are none left to remember who it belonged to. Even if you searched far and wide to the very edges of this world, you would find nothing, and I prefer to keep it that way. You of all people should know the uncertainty and self-doubt that comes of allowing someone close to you cling to the past they shared with your previous life, wondering if their feelings towards the you in your present life are genuine, do you not? I told you before -though perhaps only in passing- that...there can only ever be one of my kind in this world at any given time. I am merely a relic of a forgotten age and I am only here to ensure that my power, that now belongs to Ashlynn, does not fall into the hands of someone who refuses to let go of the past." Softening her gaze though, she smiled as she reached towards the now setting sun and quoted, "As a certain saying on Earth would go, _'Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, and today is a gift. That is why they call it the present...'_ "

* * *

And as you might have already guessed, I collapsed like a rag doll not long after that which quickly put an end to any plans we might have had of starting my lessons today. I woke up a few hours later only to find that the sun had gone down and a familiar pit of uncertainty formed in the pit of my stomach. "It happened again, didn't it?" I asked no one in particular.

With a sigh, I swung my feet over the edge of the bed and pulled out my luggage from the closest. And yes, thanks to all the gifts Sara and the others have given me I at least had a few personal belongs now. Pretty much everything I came into this world with was gone if you didn't count that I was still here physically. There were the clothes Sara bought me of course, then there were the ones Lady Celli prepared for me, after that was the flower crown Gretta made me to replace the drawing she did before, and a few other trinkets Yuri gave me for the trip so I wouldn't get too bored such as a journal I could write in and some blank music sheets since they knew I liked to write songs in my spare time.

Speaking of journals, this whole memory lapse thing was getting old though and even though I still didn't know how this whole thing worked I was starting to worry about what would happen if I didn't start writing things down to remind myself of who I was. Even now I still wasn't buying the whole _'you have a soul that belonged to someone else before'_ even though obviously it was a big deal since one of these people kept hijacking my body! With a huff I pulled out the journal and the fancy quill-like pen that went with and started writing. I had to stop myself from pushing it too hard and making ink blots so I paused, took a deep breath, then continued to write more calmly. In English I might add since with a sly grin on my face I knew no one else in this world could read except maybe for Conrad, Shori, and Yuri since for the last two, from what I knew about Japanese culture they're actually required to learn English, and Conrad has been to Earth too and from what Yuri has told me he spent quite a lot of time there protecting his unborn soul until it was ready to be given to his mother. Well, I wasn't about to ask how that works since to me I'm pretty sure you get your soul the moment you start taking form in your mother's stomach but lets not get too technical...

It felt good to vent a little bit, but at the same time I was still more scared then I was angry. Seriously, I remember looking at Shori's arm and when I saw that unfortunately it was deeper then we thought and would have needed stitches and then I started to zone out. After that I woke up in my room. They were probably talking about whatever bull my other self told them this time.

I sighed, leaving the journal open for a few minutes so the ink could dry before I closed it, "I'm with Sara on this, I wish what's-her-face would just tell us why this creep is after me and who or what I'm supposed to be that's oh-so-special."

Deciding that playing some music would be a good distraction while the ink was drying, I pulled out the guitar they gave me as a gift too and started strumming a few random cords. It couldn't be that late since the sun had only just set as far as I knew so I decided to sing a cover to a song I liked too despite it's somewhat gloomy tone. I ended up singing _'The Sound of Silence'_ quietly to myself if only because there was a small chance everyone was already asleep...

I had only just finished singing the line _'...and echoes in the wells of silence...'_ when a sudden knock on my door startled me and I clamped my hands over the strings to literally silence them before calling, "Y-yeah?"

Hearing my voice, the person at the door pushed it open with their back and smiled at me, "Oh good, you're awake. His Highness asked me to bring you your dinner since they are still in the middle of an important discussion."

I watched as the sailor set the tray down on the table I'd left my journal on and since it was open, they could see everything I wrote. I smiled internally when he looked at the strange letters then me and asked unsurely, "Pardon me miss but what language is that? I know I'm only just learning to read but even I can't make anything of that."

"Oh that?" I grinned, suddenly feeling playfully mischievous as I set the guitar down flat on my bed and told him in a hushed tone, "Well actually it's written in my own super-secret-code. Only a few people know how to read it here."

"I-is that so? At least that means I'm not forgetting how to read since I haven't been able to practice in awhile, too busy in the kitchen I suppose. That's a relief," he smiled at me but something about how it didn't reach his eyes made me suddenly feel like something seemed off. And after what happened in Yuri's castle and on the bridge I knew better then to ignore that feeling. Even if they were busy the others promised to include me more from now on so why would they send the food to my room instead? True, it might be because they didn't know how long I'd be out for but still. Better safe then sorry.

Not wanting to show that I was starting to get nervous, I picked up my guitar again and set it on my lap and said offhandedly, "Tell them thanks for the food. I'll eat in a little while. I'm not that hungry yet."

"Are you sure? It'll get cold if you don't eat it right away. Here, I'll set the table for you," he offered, again acting too insistent and friendly for my liking.

 _Why does he want me to eat so badly?_ I wondered, lowering my head and pretending to fine tune the guitar which actually did need it while out of the corner of my eye I watched the guy set the table. His actions on the surface looked completely normal yet the way he was standing, the deftness of his movements, it made me feel like he was more then just any old sailor. In fact the whole _'I can't read'_ thing tipped me off too since Sara told me before that he makes sure that all of his servants and soldiers receive a basic education. I had a feeling Yuri had a similar policy. That's when it hit me, this guy was looking for something to clue him in that I wasn't some ordinary girl, he was looking for something that made me stand out! And I'd left that something wide open for him to see just because I had written in my journal in English.

My chest tightened with anxiety when the reality of what was probably going on finally sunk it, and my heart lept in alarm when I saw some sort of powder fall out of his sleeve while he was pouring my drink. No doubt it might be in or on the food as well. I nearly jumped out of my skin again when he announced that everything was ready.

Putting down the guitar again somewhat reluctantly since I could have used it to attack him if he came at me like the last guy, I walked over to the table and sat down. I became even more nervous when the man didn't excuse himself and leave once I was seated. Now I really knew there was something wrong with this food and he was going to make sure I ate it...

Hoping my voice wouldn't crack or shake when I spoke to him, I masked my fear with shyness and said, "Um, do you need something? I'm pretty sure they didn't order you to spoon feed me."

Waving his hand dismissively, the _'sailor'_ chuckled, "That's a good one miss, I'll have to remember that one! But no, I'm merely here to serve you. They asked me to make sure you were eating properly since what happened earlier when you collapsed concerned us all."

Curious, I asked, "And what exactly DID happen?"

He blinked, "You mean no one has told you? Strange. Then again you've only just regained consciousness..."

The man paused, as if pondering about what to tell me. My heart was racing so hard now. His speech, at the very end his words and tone became far more eloquent then the classic sea-faring-man's voice he'd been using until moments before. That's when panic started to set in. I couldn't eat any of this, but at the angle he was standing at he'd see it from a mile away if I tried to fake eating or drinking what was in front of me! I was trapped!

Unfortunately for me, he started to notice my strange behavior and asked somewhat darkly, "What's the matter, not feeling well? Then you really should eat something."

"I-!" I began fearfully when the door bust open and a man with bright orange hair and forget-me-not blue eyes suddenly appeared wearing a sleeveless tan tunic, leather armlets, dark pants, and sandel-like shoes wrapped up with white straps of cloth around his legs.

Getting between me and the sailor, he drew his sword and tutted, "My my my, showing your cards so soon? Isn't that a bit hasty? I would have waited until you're back on solid ground and have an escape route at least. You White Crows are getting sloppy."

"What do you mean? Sir I'm just a humble sailor I promise," he began, getting into his act again and trying to play innocent by raising his arms in a harmless gesture, but the instant I heard that name I shot out of my seat and stood closer to my rescuer, glaring at the sailor now.

"I knew something was fishy about you, no pun intended! You were being WAY too friendly and it was creepy how you were standing there waiting for me to eat!" Pointing at his sleeve I told the guy who just came to help me -who I assumed was Yosak- "Be careful, he has some kind of powder hidden in his sleeves. I saw it fall out when he was setting the table."

"Nonesense my clothes are just a bit dusty from the flour since I was baking bread earlier," the sailor began, edging towards us after lowering his arms. "I understand that you're someone being protected but there's no need to-!"

"No, stay away from me!" I shouted, scorching the floor at his feet with a flash of fire that snapped like a whip. It didn't last long enough to spread though and actually start a real fire, I wouldn't let it.

Reaching back to pat my head gently, the swordsman in front of me smiled confidently despite my little outburst and said, "It's alright little lady, I've got this. Back up is on the way now. As for you," he smirked, raising his sword higher again, "I've been watching the comings and goings on this ship ever since the first incident so it was a mistake for you to slip in at the last minute and mess up the head count. You might not be dressed like one right now but I know a poser when I see one. Admit it, you're one of the White Crows aren't you? Do yourself a favor and surrender now before this gets ugly."

Finally dropping the act, the sailor gave me one last look before reaching into his sleeve to pull out what looked like three solid white marbles which he threw to the ground and they exploded. Coughing, I tried to look around to see where he'd gone but by the time the smoke cleared he was gone. I was just relieved that stuff was just smoke and not more of that sleeping powder that was dusted over my food.

Sheathing his sword, the man before me sighed, "Damn he got away, but if we follow him there might be others on the ship I haven't exposed yet trying to take over the ship. Come on, we better regroup with Conrart and His Highness. I think they might be in trouble too."

I nodded, "You're right. And thanks, you know, for stopping him Yosak."

Giving me an odd look, Yosak asked, "How did you know my name?"

"How? They told me there was another person in our group being the look out so I assumed it was you. Am I wrong?" I asked.

Smirking, Yosak shrugged, "Yeah well I guess that's logic for you but don't always be so sure the guy who saved you is the good guy either. It could be a ploy to get you to trust them."

Pouting a bit at his words I huffed, "Why do you think I was so freaked out by that guy? He was being too nice and even on Earth you've got to be careful. Clearly your friend Conrart didn't tell you this but I have a good head on my shoulders. I could even take you down if I needed to as long as you don't have a sword. That guy didn't so I could have taken him."

"Sure sure," Yosak winked playfully before getting serious again. "We'd better keep moving. Like I said there might be other White Crows on board the ship. We need to root them out now before they do take over the ship."

"Great..." I sighed. "So much for not causing any more drama today..."


	24. How Did It Come To This?

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note (01/31/2018):** Oh boy, hope you have some tissues ready because there will be tears! Or at least on one end. It's about time we got some more action and things get interesting near the end so please, leave a review and tell me your thoughts and theories! Aside from that, I hope you enjoy reading this nonetheless!

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Chapter 24: How Did It Come To This?

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Ship: Sara's POV

I never imagined our enemy would strike again so soon yet there they were, disguised as the crew comprised of the men that Lord Weller or his elder brother had hired who had quite obviously been replaced at some point in time. It did not escape my notice that we had one extra member to the crew when I was giving out orders and assignments but I chose to say nothing. If he attempted anything before we arrived I felt perfectly comfortable leaving that to Yuri's other companion watching from the shadows. When I suspected there was more then just the one man who had snuck aboard I brought it to everyone's attention as we sat down for dinner to discuss the newest magical display Ash had shown off to us, not to mention we were attempting to decipher the meaning behind the words of her other self who had yet again chosen to appear against Ash's will...

"This is not the first time she has said _'there can only be one,'_ but what do you suppose that means?" I asked Yuri mildly, but he only shrugged.

"Beats me, then again she does have some sort of special connection to that phoenix spirit was saw so maybe that's what she means? Whoever this lady is, she called it a _'solitary spirit'_ that lives on the sun. I guess that's why her fire magic is so much more intense just like Murata said," Yuri sighed, running his hand through his hair before looking over at his older brother who was still staring at his arm as if expecting it to fall off or start bleeding again and pointed at the offending limb. "And what was all that about when she healed Shori's gash? It was like she was reprimanding the rest of you guys for not being close to the spirits which I don't get either. Sure I can still use my magic in human lands but it's more tiring and I don't know how I do it, I just do. What she did was really something else! I mean I've never seen anyone heal a wound THAT fast, not even Geislia. There's not even a mark on him now!"

Beside me, Berias nodded in agreement. "I agree, I've not seen that level of precision from someone so young before. To think she's always been capable of such things and never knew is extraordinary. Extraordinary, and dangerous. I had assumed that the pendant His Eminence made was designed to conceal her presence but it would seem that it had absolutely no effect on this other consciousness that lives within Lady Ashlynn. Therefore I am concerned that the enemy will make another move to capture her before too long since they're very likely to have sensed her brief appearance despite that crystal's protection."

Finally snapping out of his musings, Yuri's elder brother sighed and announced. "If that's true we should probably go check on her and make sure nothing's wrong. She's not going to like it when she finds out that this other self took over again though, I know I wouldn't. Sometimes I don't know how you deal with it Yu-chan," he looked at his brother, clearly worried before briefly shooting me a glare before continuing, "Doesn't it scare you suddenly losing control of yourself when you become the Demon King? Not only that, but losing most of your memories too? You might have gotten used to it or accept it now but what about Ash? She barely knows herself when she's normal, now there's this whole other person inside of her that drops in any time she gosh darn pleases despite KNOWING how much it bothers Ash."

Noticing the hateful look his brother had given me yet also seriously considering his answer, Yuri placed a hand over his heart and tried to explain his feelings. "It's hard to explain Shori but, when I become the Demon King I'm still myself yet not at the same time. He's not some past life like whoever this lady is, he's the other me and I know he is an important part of who I am. So yeah it sucks not being able to remember much when I become him but look at everything he's done? Everything he's done is either to protect me or save others. Well, minus the uh...one incident..."

Knowing he was referring to what I made him do, I narrowed my gaze when his brother glared at me again and stood my ground as I told them, "While I do regret hurting his feelings and betraying Yuri's trust, to this day I do not regret my choice to stand up against Big Shimaron indirectly. I stand by what I said, if we had done nothing many innocent lives would have been lost on both sides. Unlike most humans I never detested the Demon Tribe. I can't explain why but perhaps it is because I too felt like a misunderstood outsider until I came to realize that I wasn't entirely human myself. Either way, as crude as my methods were they worked and those lives were spared thanks to me and an all out War was averted. As much as I would have liked to see Yuri enter the battlefield I also did not want him to come to harm. You may think me cold and heartless Lord Shori, however, I care about Yuri and am indebted to him for not only returning Berias when he had every right to imprison him forever or execute him and for saving my mother's life. I would not be here with him now working together to help Ash if I didn't trust him as much as I hope he trusts me not to walk down a similar path again."

"Sara..." Yuri smiled, happy to hear all of that I'm sure and what surprises me is that it's all true.

Before, Yuri was just someone to use, someone I was interested in for his power and because I found him interesting. Now, I am seeing the true value of working together for a common cause. Especially since he was right about the people of my country being just as important to me as his are, although I'll admit I'm still not as invested in mingling with just anyone...

Now Ash on the other hand-

Suddenly, the door to the dining room burst open and one of my soldiers stumbled inside, clutching his side, "Your Majesty, they're here! I don't know how but the White Crows are here, they're trying to take over the ship!"

"What?!" Yuri and Shori both exclaimed whilst Lord Weller, Berias, and I all immediately braced ourselves for the worse and asked for as much information as possible to better understand the situation.

Helping the wounded soldier into a chair, Lord Weller asked, "How many are there? Do you know?"

The man shook his head, wincing when his wound throbbed, "No, it all happened so fast. I was out on patrol when a member of the crew came running out of the cabin and shouted that it was _'time to take flight,'_ that's when the man next to me suddenly drew his sword and attacked ME instead of helping me sound the alarm. I managed to escape before getting fatally wounded in the chaos but I knew I had to get word to you before it was too late-!" he hunched over in pain and Berias began healing the man before turning to me for further instruction.

I nodded in silent understanding and then turned to the still stunned pair of Double-Black's and stated, "First and foremost we have to make sure Ash wasn't already captured by the enemy. Lord Shori, do you think you're skilled enough with a sword to defend yourself? You may have to since Lord Weller and Berias's skills will be needed if we are to retake the ship if it has already fallen to the enemies control. Your brother needs to be kept safe as well."

"Sara! There's no way I'm letting you go out there alone! This is my fight too!" Yuri scowled, looking as amendment as ever to which I couldn't help but smile at when I saw it.

"I won't be alone, I'll have Berias. I only hope your other friend made it to Ash in time either before this started or not long after. Lord Weller, do you have any suggestions?" I asked in a dead serious tone since we all knew how serious the situation was and the folly of waiting here too long.

Drawing his sword, Lord Weller looked at each of us in turn before stating, "Since we do not know the exact number of enemies I think we should split up into two smaller groups. One of us will go make sure Ash is alright while the other gathers the remaining soldiers and sailors that we know are our own men and launch a counter attack. If she has been captured I doubt they'll waste time taking control of the ship since we'll know exactly where they're going and they will try to slip out while we're distracted by those who are left behind as a sacrifice for their comrades. If she hasn't been captured they're likely searching for her now while the rest attempt to seize control of this vessel before they escape with her in tow. King Saralegui, since this is your ship you have a better chance of finding Ash first then we do so the rest of us will focus on holding the enemy off and preventing them from taking full control. We should still be close enough to The Great Demon Kingdom for Shori's magic to still work so he should be able to assist in the battle, also, as he stated before he doesn't want them to be used like they were by King Ranjeel so perhaps Shori could convince them to surrender. There's only a small chance it will work, but even so we should try at least."

"What about me? Come on Conrad at least give me a sword too! It might not be Morgif but I can help too. And if things get bad I'll change into the Demon King," again, Yuri's determination was inspiring, though foolish, so I decided to answer for him.

Walking over and taking Yuri by the shoulder while regarding his elder brother with a serious look, I said, "Yuri, you are both very admirable for wanting to join the fight, however, this isn't like before when they were taking my mother's orders. These men have lost everything and have come within inches of total annihilation. As such they are that much more dangerous. That, and we do not know if they've been given orders to kill anyone who gets in the way regardless of who they are. We already know they want Ash alive...but the rest of us? Who can say."

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Hallway: Ash's POV

How did it come to this? It started with just one man trying to knock me out with some sort of sleeping drug, and now the entire ship was in total chaos. No sooner had the two of us made it outside when another disguised White Crow member attacked us. I stayed as close to Yosak as possible but when he needed I quickly moved out of the way, looking around to make sure no one tried to sneak up on me while he was distracted.

Good thing I did because a second man tried to grab my arm and quicker then I would have thought possible, I unsheathed my dagger and sliced into his flesh. I called out to Yosak who had just finished off the first guy or at the very least injured him badly enough to stop him from attacking further then took my place in front of the second attacker. As soon as the second attacker was taken care of, Yosak turned to me and glanced down at my now bloody dagger with an unreadable expression before he finally spoke again.

"Little lady, I know this is scary but don't let your guard down. You're going to be fine. Just stick close to me until we find the others, ok?" His tone was firm but not unkind so I nodded, about to put the dagger away again when he stopped me. Confused, I looked at him and all he said was, "You'd better keep that out for now but don't use it unless you have to like just now, leave the rest of the fighting to me."

Taking a deep breath to calm myself while making sure I didn't look down at the dead or injured men at my feet, I nodded and relaxed the death grip I had on the hilt so my hands wouldn't cramp if or when I had to use it again.

When we made it to the other hallway I saw that we weren't the only ones fighting. Now at first glance it looked like Sara's soldiers and the sailors were randomly fighting each other but in actuality one of them was a White Crow in disguise while the other was on our side. It was impossible to tell who was who so we had no choice but to leave them to their fighting while heading in the direction where everyone else was if they weren't aware yet that something was wrong. But with all the shouting going on I had no doubt that they did.

I knew why we couldn't help the people we passed but still, when we passed someone slumped against the wall cradling a wound or dying, I held back a frightened sob because I knew that their pain was all my fault one way or another. I might as well have struck the fatal blow myself. And when someone grabbed me from behind after pretending to be hurt...I did.

I killed a man.

It was only because of the way he grabbed me that I knew he was an enemy. Nothing else could have indicated as much in the split second it took for me to perform part of my self-defense moves by slamming my head back and stomping on his foot before whirling around and stabbing the man in the abdomen. I was as surprised as he was with how quickly I managed to fight back and as much as I wanted to scream and pull out the dagger in fear and disgust, a voice in my head told me to wait until the light left the man's eyes before I let go.

Whimpering when I heard his horrible dying cries, the man slid off me to the floor and shuttered before going completely still. And to top it all off, I nearly dropped my dagger when another memory flashed through my mind...

* * *

 _I saw over a dozen men lying dead at my feet, my sword gleaming in the light of the slowly rising sun that could not be seen behind the dark plume of smoke rising from the city I was defending. And I thought the exact same thing I was thinking right now. How had it come to this...?_

 _I was breathing heavily and barely felt it when a comforting hand came to rest upon my shoulder, gently pulling me into their arms. As they hushed me and stroked my blood-clotted golden hair, I finally allowed myself to weep over the senseless deaths that I had taken part in. And all the while the person holding me kept trying to bring me back out of the sorrowful and fearful haze that clouded my mind._

" _It's over now my dearest, you did what you had to do and nothing more. They chose their fate and it is only right that we oblige them to protect our own from destruction. Don't cry over those that do not deserve your tears," he lifted my face so that I would look up at him properly but my vision was still blurred by those very same tears smearing the blood and soot covering my cheeks. Then he brushed my cheeks with his thumbs before kissing my eyelid before another tear could fall and said,"Come. Let us return to the castle. The others will be relieved to know that you are unharmed. The battle was hard fought but in the end you saved us, as you always have. Be glad of that."_

 _Shaking my head, I asked imploringly, "How can I be glad when so many have died for my sake...?"_

 _Troubled, the man before me relented, "I suppose you can't, being as kind as you are even the death of an enemy wounds that gentle heart of yours. But know this, those who fought did so because they believe in you. You are our light. And you are the reason many of them have been able to live these long and bountiful lives. They were indebted to you, so to weep over their sacrifice can only mean that you did not believe in them."_

" _That's not true!" I exclaimed, shoving him away and placing my free hand over my heart, "Do not mistake my tears for their loss as lack of faith! It is simply that...that...they were my friends! And even those who weren't still died for what they believed in, even though it was all a farce. Men will always fear beings more powerful then themselves. That is the way of things. So rather then being stronger then everyone else...why can't I stand as their equal? As their sister in arms? Isn't that why I fought today? To show them I'm no different then they are?"_

 _With a sigh, he simply shook his head and took my hand away from my heart to place it over his own, "But you ARE different. It's time that you accept that. If you were anything less then what you are then these other nations wouldn't be so ruthless when it comes to obtaining your power for themselves. So you have two choices; either accept what you are and move forward, or deny it and cling to a dream that can never be fulfilled. You, my dear, are one of a kind. Even the Double-Blacks cannot claim as much. Now please, enough of this. You need to rest. Clearly this battle has taken it's toll on you. For my sake, I beg of you, do not let the losses you've suffered today make you forget what you still have right in front of you."_

 _Choking on another sob, I wrapped my arms around him and wept freely, determined to take his words to heart. But for now I needed to grieve, to feel, to be human if only for a moment. That way I could carry on without any further regrets and as he said, take comfort in what my actions today managed to save from total ruin._


	25. Battle Scars

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

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Chapter 25: Battle Scars

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Hallway: Yosak's POV

I'll admit, the little lady certainly had spunk...

When I noticed the extra sailor making his way to her room I knew something was up, seeing as the Captain and the young man were all waiting for her to wake up so they could talk to her. Therefore it seemed odd that they'd decide to send her dinner to the bedroom instead. Sure they wanted to let her sleep but they wanted answers more, and besides, we were worried about her. Yeah, even though I didn't really know her the way Conrart spoke about the little lady kind of tipped me off that oddly enough he sort of admired her. And to have him admire anyone in and of itself was quite the feat.

I was shocked when I saw how quickly the little lady reacted when the first White Crow showed his true colors to us. They were right, the way she used fire magic was unlike anything I've ever seen Lord Von Bielefeld do, or any fire user for that matter. I felt the heat wave when her power whipped across the floor as a warning to keep back.

She was clearly trying to act tough but was secretly scared out of her mind. I could relate. Still, I had to keep her from lashing out with her power even though they already knew we'd left The Great Demon Kingdom since if my experience with His Highness has taught me anything, its that magic is more unpredictable especially when the user is at the height of emotion.

I had a job to do but I did my best to reassure the little lady and that seemed to do the trick when we exchanged some light-hearted banter despite what was going down at the moment. And yeah I was surprised she knew who I was but her logic was sound, at least this time. That's why I decided to warn her not to be so trusting when she made this adorable pouty face and told me she knew that already which is why she didn't trust the sailor when he started acting weird. I had to hand it to her, unlike His Highness she had a sharp eye for these things.

What worried me though, was why? Why was the little lady so attuned to the possible dangers around her when Earth was supposed to be a very safe place? Was it because she grew up in a different country than King Yuri? I knew the gist about what her life had been like, never able to settle down anywhere with a family that didn't drop out of adopting her at the last minute. That still didn't explain the way the little lady reacted as she'd been formally trained in combat and battle strategy her entire life.

The way she moved when I was too busy fighting another disguised White Crow, it was so fluent and from the looks of it the little lady moved instinctively as if her body already knew how it was suppose to move to avoid an attack. At least she was relying mostly on me like I asked her to and called my name when another attacker closed in on her. I was grateful that the little lady knew how to keep a cool head despite all this and how scared she was, really, she could teach King Yuri a thing or two about not playing the hero all the time and being reckless.

She was by no means a coward though, in fact I'd forgotten they armed her with a small dagger and the little lady didn't hesitate to use it to defend herself when I couldn't reach her in time. Still, when I looked down at her trembling hands, it was clear that this whole thing was effecting her as much as it would have anyone in her position. Being targeted like this took awhile to get used to. King Yuri could attest to that but...unlike this young lady, he's always had us. Ok well maybe not me at first since to be honest he was just some clueless kid handed power over our lives on a silver platter with no idea how to use it. That's why I disliked him or at the very least felt the need to challenge him. Eventually, like everyone else, he won me over and here I was, willing to die for my king as easily as I would for my best friend Conrart.

I couldn't help but feel a similar desired to test this girl, so I told her to keep the dagger out just in case. The idea troubled her at first, but it didn't take long for the little lady to see the necessity of keeping it out and at the ready. What I didn't expect though, was for the little lady to actually kill one of the men I thought I'd already taken out that tried to sneak up on the poor girl while my back was turned. And I soon came to regret my decision about testing that strength of will Conrart was telling me about...

I expected the little lady to pull the weapon out and faint from shock or something but with a frightened determination in her eyes she held her ground and waited for the man to fall to the ground and stop breathing. After that, she sort of stood there, eyes glazed over and she started shining gold from the inside just like earlier only this time was different.

Conrart described what happened to me before but to see her change before my eyes came as a complete shock. Her hair faded from reddish-brown to gold and so did her eyes. Then tears of light began falling from her cheeks as she asked, _"How did it come to this...?"_ in a strangely ethereal voice with a otherworldly echo.

I didn't have much time to ponder though as several other White Crows, who had spotted the light coming off of the little lady from down this hall came right at us. I decided to grab her and make a run for it since there were too many of them but she didn't seem to notice when I slung her over my shoulders like a sack of potatoes. Unfortunately she dropped the dagger somewhere along the way but it wasn't as if she could use it in the state she was in. It wasn't until a few minutes later when I managed to throw them off our trail by dashing into a nearby room that she finally snapped out of it.

Blinking a few times after the light faded and her hair and eyes changed back, the little lady grasped her head, shaking it and said, "I remember. I've...fought like this before. A long time ago. But, no, that wasn't me was it?"

After I carefully set her back down and let her regain her footing, I smiled as I ruffled her hair again, earning a confused look as I told her, "Welcome back little lady, you had me worried for a second there when you-" I stopped though when a look of horror flitted across her face when she remembered something else, something she'd done just moments ago.

"D-did I really just kill that man?" she asked in alarm, grabbing fists full of my shirt as her terrified eyes bore into mine. "I did, didn't I? How could you let me do something so awful? Please, tell me I didn't just murder someone! I didn't mean to! Oh my god...oh my god..."

 _Oh crap she's freaking out, I better say something fast!_ I thought before taking her hands off of me as gently as I could even though her grip was surprisingly strong for someone so small as I led her further into the room and lowered my voice to a whisper.

"Shh. It's ok. Calm down, you didn't murder anyone. There's a big difference between defending yourself and murdering someone," I watched her expression intently for any signs that she wasn't taking what I was saying well before continuing firmly, "Murdering someone means you kill them out of malice or for personal gain. Now tell me, did you kill that man to get something out of it?"

Swallowing hard, she shook her head and replied shakily, "No. I-I didn't want to k-kill him. I only meant t-to hurt him a little so h-he'd back off."

"See? You were only defending yourself. There's nothing wrong with that. I'm just sorry I didn't get back over to you in time little lady. You shouldn't have had to do that. But, you did what you had to," I patted her head again, watching quietly as more tears fell from her cheeks as she desperately tried to calm herself by taking in several deep breaths. Once it looked like she had calmed herself down enough, I added seriously. "Listen, I need you to do me a favor. I know they've already found you and know you're somewhere on the ship, but you have to try not to use any magic then you already have in case it breaks that crystal that His Eminence gave you. If you lose control of it here then we'll all be in trouble, especially you. Also, I know it's a lot to ask when we're in the middle of a fight but, I need you to stay here and wait for me. I'm going to try and draw them off."

"You're leaving?" she asked, looking slightly panicked for a second until the look she gave me moments later showed me the little lady realized that I wasn't abandoning her. Though clearly she was still in shock.

Truthfully, I was just trying to avoid putting her in such a compromising position again. Especially now that she'd lost her dagger and the only real weapon she had left were her powers...

Looking at me with large quivering eyes, the little lady finally nodded solemnly, "I understand. I'll stay here, but if you don't come back in five minutes I'm going to-"

"Hey, I said I'll be back and I will be before you know it! Everything is gonna be fine, I promise," I smiled brightly hoping to reassure the poor thing while in the back of my mind I was secretly impressed by how well she was holding herself together now despite how scary this situation must be from her perspective.

Glancing over my shoulder though, I tensed when I heard footsteps outside the room. _Crud, they might have already found us and I've got to keep her from changing forms again,_ I thought, moving to position myself in front of her, facing the door when it slowly began to creak open.

It could have been anyone opening that door. But since it was most likely an enemy we both tensed, though the little lady was barely able to stop herself from breathing too heavily and alerting whoever was on the other side. Not that it mattered since they were already opening the door. I felt a weight press against my back when the little lady hid further behind me, obviously having reached her limit in the bravery department, but I ignored it for now, all of my focus trained on the door as a figure stepped inside, followed by another soon after.

It was pretty dark in this room even with the moonlight coming through the cabin's window so I could barely make out the outline of two people but once I did I relaxed the tension on my sword slightly. I was about to tell the little lady she could relax when one of the figures spoke instead. "Lady Ashlynn, are you in here?"

"Its alright, we've taken care of most of the White Crows in the hallway now. You two can come out now," the second voice called, which I recognized as King Saralegui's while the first obviously belonged to his bodyguard Berias.

Of course the little lady realized who was speaking as well and an audible sigh of relief escaped her lips and she collapsed to her knees. Shaking her head in denial, she breathed, "No, it's not alright Sara. I...I killed someone. I didn't mean to _but I killed them. So many people died today...and for what? What could possibly justify such senseless violence? How did it come to this? Someone tell me. Why...?"_

"This again?" I wondered out loud when in the middle of her sentence her voice changed again and she started to give off her own light, rendering the lantern in King Saralegui's hand useless.

Frowning, the young king turned to me asked me in a dangerously low voice, "What is she talking about? Who did she kill? And more importantly how could you put her in that position? I thought protecting her was your job."

I returned his frown tenfold and replied bluntly, "Look Your Highness, we don't have time for this. From the sound of it at least you already know we're under attack by undercover White Crows. I know you're just as worried as I am about the little lady but as you can see we've got bigger problems. And unfortunately the little lady hasn't really had any time to recover from the shock of someone trying to drug her before all hell broke loose. As for the White Crow she killed, the little lady was only trying to protect herself when I was too busy fighting another Crow and then she used that dagger we gave her a bit too well. Other then that I really don't know what she's talking about. My guess is that something about what happened back there made her recall something traumatic from her past life and as a defense mechanism she keeps unconsciously shifting into that other form. You're a persuasive guy, mind seeing if you can help her calm down again? She'll be safe with you and I need to report back to Conrart."

As expected he nodded, all too eager to get rid of me which made me wonder if I was making the right choice entrusting her to his care. After all, by now all we really knew about the little lady was some of the incredible things she was capable of and if she was anything like King Yuri then this guy was sure to want to exploit that power somehow. I don't care how much he's supposedly changed, King Saralegui still has a long way to go in my books before I start blindly trusting the guy. At the same time though I knew the little lady really needed the support and I wasn't sure I was the right guy for the job. Sure I understood fighting and the battlefield but that's because I'm a soldier. And I had this sinking feeling that this girl, whether she remembered it or not, had more then a few battle scars of her own hiding just beneath the surface...


	26. Turbulent Emotions

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note (02/09/2018):** Yeah so, I decided to rewrite that last part anyway once I realized it was just a bit TOO random. But either way I'd still love to hear your thoughts! No seriously! The silence is killing me! I miss seeing reviews in my inbox!

 **P.S.** Oh and I renamed the chapter too...

* * *

Chapter 26: Turbulent Emotions

* * *

Sara's POV

As soon as that man Yosak left to _'report back'_ as he put it, albeit a little hesitantly since he wasn't sure he was making the right call leaving me alone with Ash, I assured him as best I could given my history with Yuri that was making him skeptical of my true intentions. Not that I blame him. Still, the Demon King was the last thing on my mind at present as I turned my attention to the clearly distraught girl. I could only sigh as I offered my hand to her and told Ash sincerely, "I did try to warn you, Ash, that you are simply not capable of hurting anyone without also hurting yourself. Namely, your heart. Its the same...short coming Yuri has unfortunately. You are too forgiving, even to strangers, and you care too much for the fate of others who have only brought their demise upon themselves."

Hearing those words caused Ash to flinch and look at me with those shining eyes of hers. And by that I mean she was still actually glowing from within. What struck me as odd was that her tears were glowing too, like molten metal and unlike before she didn't seem to be like her _'other self'_ at all, but rather was disoriented by a sudden rush of memories that were buried until now and suddenly brought to the forefront of her mind, confusing both her thoughts and feelings...

To further prove my theory, she averted her gaze and in that same distant voice replied, " _How can you say that? You know that I never asked for this. I never asked to..."_

"To what?" I urged gently, as eager for answers as I was curious about her odd behavior so I knelt down and took her by the hand while Berias diligently kept watch for us.

That's when I suddenly noticed the pendant His Eminence had given her was already starting to crack. Well that couldn't be a good sign. If this was meant to suppress her powers, then this emotionally traumatic memory that had been triggered, it must be frightening indeed. And if this broke...the entire ship might go up in flames.

"Your Highness, should get moving," Berias commented, staring intently at the now shut doorway behind us. "If we tarry here any longer we risk getting caught."

"I know, just give me a moment," I called, dropping Ash's hand and looking straight into her eyes, searching. Then, for reasons I cannot explain, I decided that only one thing would snap her out of this strange memory induced trance. So without thinking much of it I brushed away her tears with my thumbs before lifting her chin and I pressed my lips to hers.

What I did not expect was the reaction I did get which was that she tearfully kissed me back instead of jerking away in surprise as I expected. Her warmth enveloped me and when she pulled away from me, she was smiling in a sad but knowing way and said, " _You did always know what to say back then to bring me back down to earth and remind me that I cannot be held accountable for the actions of those already set on their path. That's what I've always loved about you. But even so, I still hope that someday I can change the way people see me. I want to live to see the day when we will be able to walk in a world without war and without death. A world that we can live in together, in peace. A world where we can see each other for who, not what, we are..."_

Opposite from what I had intended, I was the one who was completely shocked by her words and actions. Ash was acting as though she knew me, or rather like I reminded her of someone else. I cannot safely say if it was the contentment that washed over her face or the fact that Ash had finally calmed down from the whole ordeal but she finally stopped glowing then turned to look at me again, blinking in confusion.

"Sara?" she asked, blinking some more and looking around some more. Then a gasp escaped her lips and she shot to her feet, covering her mouth. Raising a skeptical brow, wondering if she remembered that I just kissed her, I was almost disappointed when Ash dropped her hands and clenched her fists as she glared at the floor. "What's happening to me? Since when have I- Yosak was right, no, you were both right. I wasn't prepared for something like this and I should have listened and let you guys handle this. But no, I just HAD to prove you wrong and show you how strong I am only to fall apart like that when-"

"Enough," I cut her off sharply, knowing she was feeling guilty over what happened to that man who attacked her and feeling ashamed of her fear. But both were natural, and all things considering Ash had done the right thing in the end. Things would have taken a turn for the worst if they managed to capture her after all that. "Lord Weller's friend was right when he told you you did what you had to. And the fight is not over yet. So don't trouble yourself over what's already been done because there is still much left to be done," smiling, I stood and offered her my hand, feeling a faint but noticeable warmth ripple through my chest at the sight of Ash returning to her strong fiery self and asked, "Yuri and the others are waiting for us and need our help. Once they know you're safe we can put a plan in motion to strike back. Now, will you let us protect you properly this time? Ash?"

Her gaze alternating from my face to my hand she briefly glanced over at Berias who was paying us no mind and finally sighed, blushing as she accepted my hand though I noticed she was still trembling. And finally, Ash sighed in defeat and nodded, allowing me to escort her out of the room once Berias declared that we were in the clear. There were a few fallen White Crows literally the hallway and at first she shrunk away from them, however, after a point Ash merely followed my lead, ignoring her fears for now to focus on the bigger picture. Which, again, only made me admire the young girl beside me that much more.

* * *

Ash's POV

I actually felt relieved once we managed to sneak outside to the deck where the open sky helped me feel less trapped and the scent of the cool night air mixed with the natural saltiness of the sea calmed my frazzled nerves. Really, aside from the whole blurry memory part when I was clearly freaking out, I was finally starting to get my head back in the game. Though this was anything but a game. This was serious. And if we had any chance of beating these guys, this time I had to listen to reason and work with everyone to solve the problem instead of thinking I could handle anything thrown my way since clearly I hadn't.

I seriously messed up back there, but I'm glad that Yosak guy didn't let me beat myself up over it either. Sara wasn't letting me either. I was still troubled and even scared of what I'd done, just not to the point of breaking down again. I had to focus on what I could do, not what I have done just like Sara told me.

As we made our way down the hallway out into the open his hand never left mine. His reassurance made me feel safe, though at the same time I didn't let that fool me. Sara was a sneaky sort of guy and he was obviously trying to win me over for some reason but really, he still had to do that NOW of all times? Seriously whenever he sent one of those handsome smiles my way my face flushed with a wave of heat blooming across them so strongly I almost thought I was literally glowing again. The way his eyes sparkled adventurously at me and how his smile gave me the impression of him laughing at something only he knew about made me kind of annoyed to be perfectly honest.

Was this his idea of excitement? We were dealing with crazy cultist-like weirdos trying to kidnap me and spirit me away to god knows where and there Sara was grinning like a cat whenever Berias got the jump on someone and knocked them out with a swift jab to the gut with his swords. I was grateful though they were trying not to kill or seriously injure anyone if they could avoid it for my sake. Although I wished we could have done that from the beginning, which I know is a stupid wish since everything happened so fast and the White Crow guys were up in arms almost before I could blink...

"Just how many of these guys snuck on the ship anyway? There's no end to this," I frowned, looking around and seeing how many people were laying on the ground either dead, unconscious, or seriously injured though thankfully it was too dark out to make out anything else.

"I don't know, but from what I can tell they planned this out VERY well. Suppose we should have remembered exactly who we're dealing with now," Sara replied offhandedly, watching Berias scan the area for either more enemies or-!

All of a sudden, the ship lurched to the side and I staggered against Sara, looking around wildly. "What in the-"

"Oh my. Did someone make Yuri angry?" Sara wondered aloud with a creepy sort of glee shining in his eyes as he held me close while waiting for the ship to steady itself.

"Cut it out Sara," I frowned again, pushing him off of me which earned a look of bafflement from the young king. Feeling like I needed to distract him instead I scoffed, "Just because the ship lurched doesn't mean Yuri's using his own magical mumbo-jumbo. It could be his brother for all we know or it even could have been a sea monster or something. You have those here right? Well lets hope not because I'm pretty sure fire is weak against water."

Clearly not expecting that sort of remark Sara chuckled, "You really are a strange girl you know that? Sea monsters? Really? Those have been extinct for hundreds of years because poachers hunted them for their luminescent scales. Not even the Great Demon Kingdom was able to stop them in time before they killed the last one."

With a sigh, I just shrugged, "Just because you haven't seen something in a long time doesn't mean it's completely gone, especially since you don't have the technology here for deep sea diving to see that for yourself. Anyway I think Berias has found a clear path so lets-! Aaaaah!"

All of a sudden the ship lurched again in the opposite direction and I was sent skidding across the deck into the railing. Momentarily stunned, I blinked the stars out of my eyes but when I looked up, a cascade of water came crashing down on me. It was only then that I realized just how stormy the ocean had become all of a sudden. The moonlight above up above us was suddenly blotted out by pitch black clouds and threads of lightning lashed across them and occasionally struck the open sea, illuminating the water.

Calling above the now howling wind I admitted, "Ok, maybe you're right! This storm isn't natural!"

Unable to keep the smirk out of his voice Sara called, "Of course I'm right, unlike you I've actually seen his power first hand on several occasions. Either way I suppose this means Yuri has decided to wrap things up for us himself. Still it's dangerous out here so lets hurry back inside, here, take my hand!"

Half-blinded by the heavy raindrops blurring my vision, I began fighting my way over to him when several men burst out of the hallway we had just come out of and pointed at me, drawing their swords. Seriously how many of these guys were there!? Desperately trying to avoid a repeat of what happened earlier, I had a sudden idea and smirked, not noticing the crystal around my neck crack a bit more when I willed my power into the now soaked deck to evaporate the water and create a mist to block us from their view. Then I finally made it over to Sara, my expression serious when I shouted for him to run.

He nodded and took my hand and the moment we made it over to Berias we made our way to the opposite side of the ship where the captain's cabin was. Because that's where the others were heading to retake the ship or defend it FROM being taken. Either way, something had obviously happened if Yuri was using magic like this. Then again, I still had this sinking feeling it might actually be Shori's doing after he explained how he'd lost control of his powers a few times before and has been training hard since then to keep it from doing just that.

However, almost everyone here has already warned me of the dangers of having an emotional outburst effect my powers so I was worried that Shori might have done the same. After all, he had a history with these people. Or at least their order in general. And because I knew that a new dread filled my chest. What if...what if Shori knew the man I killed? Did I kill someone Shori could have saved...?

All this time, I've been underestimating just how badly these people want me. When put into words it sounded so simple but they were right. If these people were willing to threaten a child to force me to submit or trick me into using my powers so they could watch my every move, if they were going to hurt me to bend me to their will, and if they were going to plan such an elaborate scheme to take over the ship I was on to reach this ruined village, then there was a lot more to this then we first thought. Which posed the question we were all still asking ourselves...

Just who am I?


	27. Shelter From The Storm

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note (02/09/2018): IMPORTANT!** Since I re-wrote the last part of the previous chapter if you were one of the people who read it before the change then I suggest you go back and read it again so this one will make sense. Especially if you're following this story and didn't get an email. I know I didn't but then again since I accidentally deleted the previous chapter instead of just replacing it with an updated word doc so I'm not sure what happened or how it effects the notifications. Either way that's what's going on just so you know. Oh and lastly this story will have the song lyrics for the song below but the credit/disclaimer is still here at the top too since Ash will be singing this song.

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Chapter 27: Shelter From The Storm

 _(Chapter inspired by the song Safe and Sound by Taylor Swift)_

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Shori's POV

Honestly when we finally went out to join the frey I half expected at least a few White Crows to recognize me and stop their attack at least long enough for me to get a word in to try and convince them to back down. So either they were too focused on the task at hand or maybe they've since recruited some new members to their new cause that didn't know me. Either way I wasn't happy about this at all. How in the world did none of us see this coming? I know the White Crows have always been sneaky but this...this was a whole new level of smart coming from them.

And more importantly, a whole new level of dangerous. Unlike so many times before Ken Murata wasn't here to bail us out and use that big brain of his to figure a way out of this mess. No, it was up to Conrad and me to keep my little brother safe and hopefully find Ash before anything bad happened...

"There really are a lot of them here, aren't there," I frowned after Conrad took a few more of them out so we could get past them and hopefully find wherever they locked up the actual crew of the ship since so far we've only encountered undercover White Crow members. I only hoped that they didn't just kill off the real crew already and one of them actually knew how to navigate this ship to take us and Ash who knows where.

Conrad as usual could almost read my thoughts as well as he usually did with my brothers and nodded with a frown as he stepped over a body, "Yes, and the speed in which they put this plan together gives me the impression that King Saralegui wasn't the only one making preparations while all of our focus was on helping Ash stabilize her powers. We played right into their hands. Still, they had to at least leave most of the crew the same to avoid arousing suspicion otherwise King Saralegui would have noticed sooner. And I doubt he would have let things get this out of hand on purpose. If anything Saralegui was probably trying to flush them out just like we were trying to do before. In fact that's why I asked Yosak to come so he could do the same and good thing too. I'm sure Ash is in good hands since I also asked him to watch over her from the sidelines instead of His Majesty."

"Eh? You knew all this would happen? Then why did we think it was safe to leave Ash alone in her room like that? Are you sure we shouldn't-!" My younger brother gasped when more men rounded the corner, actually holding a crewman captive who had managed to escape earlier.

There was no time to hide so we stood our ground, and thankfully I had the foresight to _'borrow'_ a couple of swords from the fallen enemies around us so that Yuri and I were armed to defend ourselves at least. That way Conrad wouldn't have to worry too much about protecting both of us at once.

As expected it didn't take too long before the White Crows noticed our presence and all but ignored their captive, who one of them decided to knock out just to get him out of the way when they moved to advance on the three of us. When they got in closer, the man in the front suddenly froze, his eyes staring intently at me. That's when I smiled inwardly, hoping that this was finally my chance to do something to help!

"Lord Shori?" the man asked in a calm even tone, glancing at either side of them as his comrades helped block our way forward. Taking a step forward which made Conrad grip his sword tighter, I took this opportunity to step forward myself so the man could get a clearer view of me.

We hadn't dyed my hair yet or put in the contacts so I was still totally Double-Black in their eyes. They knew Yuri too of course, judging by how their eyes grew slightly wider with realization and almost...resignation as if they were expecting my brother to pass his trademark form of _'judgment'_ on them. Still, since these guys were the first ones not to attack first and ask questions later I stole my chance to finally talk to them.

"Long time no see. Then again, I'm not sure how long it's been over here on this side," I admitted, earning a raised eyebrow from the man in charge of the others as far as I could tell.

"It hasn't been long enough, unfortunately," he replied curtly but I could still see a hint of uncertainty in his eyes which gave me hope that this might work as long as I played my cards right. Taking a deep breath though, the White Crow in question continued, "You saved us once before, as did the Demon King though unintentionally. For that, as one of the few who survived that battle I thank you. Still, I am asking you to surrender so we are not forced to subdue you both. And Lord Weller of course. Once we have the girl-"

"What do you guys want with her so badly?" Yuri demanded in an angry yet pleading tone. "Please, just stop. We don't want to fight you guys either but you're not giving us much choice! Besides, someone that your new employer hired threatened my daughter, Gretta, and then they used some freaky spell to hurt Ash! How can you guys work for a creep who's willing to do that? At least Alazon's intentions were good ones, as messed up as her methods were. Whatever this guy is offering you it isn't worth it."

Now openly glaring at my brother the man spat back venomously, "Do not speak about that woman in front of me. We should have known that once our purpose was fulfilled she would have no further use for us. After all, we were already nothing of consequence before she found us. Alazon brought us out of the darkness, only to throw us back into it and feed what was left of us to the wolves when we needed her most. When Janis needed her most she..." his gaze saddened and another sigh escaped his lips before he nodded for his companions to move in closer to us. "My true master was and always will be Janis, not her, and if only because I know you gave the dying man some peace in the end, King Yuri, I will do my utmost to ensure that your life and that of your companions is spared. But I cannot leave without the girl."

Yuri was about to speak up again when I stopped him with a look and shook my head. He might not be the brightest little brother sometimes, but a silent understanding passed between us and he finally backed off. This was something I HAD to do. Conrad already understood this because he wasn't saying anything either, and when I looked at him, he nodded as well, trusting my judgement.

So after completely stepping away from the other two to get closer, I dropped my borrowed sword with a loud clatter and asked soberly, "How many?"

"What?" he gaped, taken aback by my sudden question.

Feeling genuinely afraid of the answer, I clenched my fists and kept my eyes locked on him the whole time before finally elaborating, "How many of you made it out of that fight alive?"

It was clear that at first he was unsure about whether or not to answer, but then with a sad smile, he told us truthfully, "Of our original members, only twelve, including myself made it out of there alive. There were two others, but they later succumbed to their fatal injuries shortly after we escaped..."

The color immediately drained from my face. I had tried estimating the numbers over and over in my head and not ONCE did they come out that small. There was no way! Unless he was lying about their numbers, there was just no way this could be true! I was THERE! I saw for myself just how many members and candidates were in that place and there had to be more survivors then that. There had to be others! And I...I wanted to save them so badly, to do something right for once!

"Shori!" Conrad and my brother both cried out when I started to glow brightly without realizing I was letting my emotions get the better of me.

But this White Crow knew, and this proved to be just the distraction they needed to retreat back down the other hall before violent waves started slamming against the ship as my power reflected the raw and agonizing emotions in my heart and called forth a violent storm outside. I couldn't think, couldn't focus, all I could feel was this despair that I had somehow failed the White Crows somehow by not being strong enough to wield that stupid sword! Why couldn't I save more of them than this? WHY!?

* * *

Ash's POV

"Achoo!" I sneezed before I could stop myself. While it was still pouring cats and dogs outside, at least Sara managed to take at least some shelter under the overhang. As for me, that wave that made it over the side of the ship completely drenched me from head to tow and the rainfall didn't exactly help.

With a quick glace at the door that Berias was blockading, Sara shrugged off his white overcoat just like the first time we met and drapped it over my shoulders. I smiled appreciatively but flinched when the ship lurched again, only a bit more strongly.

Frowning, I looked at Sara and said in all seriousness, "Sara, we have to find Yuri and stop him if this really is his doing. Causing a storm like this is probably more dangerous then me just setting it on fire! At least if the ship sank we'd have the lifeboats but if the sea is all stormy then-!"

"Calm down, I'm sure Lord Weller has everything under control. If anyone can calm Yuri's powers, it's him," Sara assured me with this strange look on his face halfway between envy and confidence in his own words.

"And if it's Shori?" I challenged, though there was an obvious hint of worry in my voice.

Instead of answering he merely shrugged and called back to Berias, "That should suffice for now if that last wave didn't knock them off the ship. Let's hurry and meet up with the rest of them."

"Yes Sir," Berias nodded, taking the lead in front of us as we immediately started sprinting down the hall.

Thankfully all of the enemies in this hallway were already taken care of by the looks of things, but little did I know that the man Shori had spoken to was hiding in a room right next to us and peered out as soon as he heard my voice. Still, he decided against making his next move just yet since he needed to group and gather the rest of his men for either one last stand or to escape. Although only four of them were a part of the original White Crows and the rest were more recruits, he didn't want anyone else to get injured today if it could be avoided, including Shori, but especially me since I was their main target.

My instincts started screaming against going towards the source of the rumbling but I knew we had to so I kept putting one foot in front of the other even when the bitter cold seemed to seep into my bones despite the added warmth of Sara's overcoat. Under different circumstances I would have been flattered by how much of a gentleman he was but again, this just wasn't the time. I'm not sure what happened but ever since Sara first took my hand earlier I've been more jumpy and nervous because of it, almost shy, like my body was remembering something it shouldn't and was making me feel even more drawn to him. It was weird.

Then again I was probably just scared and was clinging to him for any sort of comfort right now because I was so confused and angry at myself. Either way, Sara asked me to let them protect me and I promised I would do what I could to make things easier for them so I did, just not at the cost of doing something I know I'd regret. The same way I regretted killing that man who got the jump on me.

I was abruptly shaken out of my thoughts when I felt an invisible pulse pass right through me. I gasped, wondering what it was when I heard Shori's voice, crying out. After that, a sudden fear for him took hold of my heart and I ran ahead of Sara and Berias before they could stop me, letting go of Sara's now soaked overcoat and letting it fall to the ground. At the same time, Yosak also rounded the corner with a group of people behind him that I recognized as some of Sara's actual crew but I ignored them and kept going...

That's when I saw Shori gripping his head in anguish while Conrad and Yuri both tried to reach him both physically and with their voices, but it was no use, Shori was clearly out of it. The sight of it terrified me because not only did it remind me of the last time my own powers lashed out, though in a more pointed way, but I saw in his eyes the same horrified look of regret that I was feeling earlier only much more intensely.

Aware now that Sara, Berias, Yosak, and the real crew were right behind me, that spurred me forward despite hearing Conrad and Yuri warning me against it. And that must have been really hard to do for Yuri especially and this was his older brother we were talking about. But I knew. I'm not sure how, but I knew I could stop him. And since Shori was a friend to me now too I wanted to do everything in my power to help him. I just had to remember that this was MY power now just as much as it was for my other self. This was something I had to do. To prove that I could do something right this time, and that I cared about what happened to all of the people around me putting their lives at risk to save me when there were still times I wondered if any of this was worth it in the end.

When I looked up I saw that a pillar of light was shooting itself into the sky, fueling this storm from where Shori was standing. That's probably what shook the ship so badly the third time. I looked around, knowing the others were warning me to get away but I could barely hear them anymore over Shori's screams, the howling wind, and the roar of each bolt of lightening that flashed outside followed by a peel of thunder.

Closing my eyes, I willed all of it into silence, listening only to my own heartbeat. It was strange, but when I reached for my fire powers it felt like I was holding a beating heart in my hands. It had been scary at first until I realized something. My power isn't just energy, its my life-force. In this world...that energy is alive. I wasn't aware of it myself when that phoenix they were talking about appeared but I could feel it now, it was waiting for me to call upon it, to let it's strength fill me. And call for it I did and because of how I felt towards it right now, I wasn't afraid, if anything I felt a sense of serenity the moment I felt the comforting heat evaporate the water in my cloths.

After that I started to glow gold again but this time, I was still me, I was in control of it because I believed in it, in myself, and in what I was using it for. Still, I frowned when I realized I couldn't just evaporate ALL the water Shori was summoning, it would make it hard to breath even if the steam did escape through the hole in the roof. I didn't want to hurt him either. No, I had to reach him without touching him with my powers or my hands. I had to reach his heart.

The moment I thought this, a familiar bird cry broke through everything else and it appeared behind me once again, though it had reduced its size to fit in the narrow hallway and I could hear the hiss of steam whenever a droplet of water struck its burning wings. Smiling up at it as it arched its head down to nuzzle my cheek, I turned to Shori and took a deep breath, doing the last thing anyone expected me to do to help put a stop to Shori's outburst-

I began to sing.

And all the while the phoenix behind me sang with me too in it's unearthly and serenely ethereal voice that for lack of a better description was a mixture between the soothing sound of whale-song and something like a skylark or nightingale. And even as I reached the lyrics talking about the morning sun, as Shori calmed down, the sun began breaking through the dark clouds, turning everything red and gold. With each new verse, I also reached out for Shori, hoping my feelings would reach him that everything was going to be ok even though I didn't know why he looked so upset:

 _I remember tears streaming down your face_

 _When I said, "I'll never let you go."_

 _When all those shadows almost killed your light_

 _I remember you said, "Don't leave me here alone,"_

 _But all that's dead and gone and passed tonight_

 _Just close your eyes_

 _The sun is going down_

 _You'll be alright_

 _No one can hurt you now_

 _Come morning light_

 _You and I'll be safe and sound_

 _Don't you dare look out your window, darling._

 _Everything's on fire_

 _The war outside our door keeps raging on_

 _Hold onto this lullaby_

 _Even when the music's gone_

 _Gone_

 _Just close your eyes_

 _The sun is going down_

 _You'll be alright_

 _No one can hurt you now_

 _Come morning light_

 _You and I'll be safe and sound_

 _Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh_

 _La, la (la, la)_

 _La, la (la, la)_

 _Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh_

 _La, la (la, la)_

 _Just close your eyes_

 _You'll be alright_

 _Come morning light,_

 _You and I'll be safe and sound..._

 _Ooh, ooh, ooh, ooh, oh, oh_


	28. Aftermath

**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Kyo Kara Maoh, this is purely fan-made.

 **Note (02/10/2018):** Not sure why the last chapter didn't update properly and on the site it says was updated on the 8th when I know it was the 9th but I'm guessing it has something to do with the fact that I stupidly deleted a chapter and had to basically re-post it when I meant to replace it with an updated doc. Guess I was more out of it then I thought. Still, I'm glad I chose to re-write the last part of the chapter before last since I managed to write a scene that in my head was just...beautiful. That song, for me in real life, means a lot because I have precious friends who shelter me and give me support when it feels like my world is crashing down all around me. They say that sometimes you put part of yourself into each character you make and I think that's true, although I'd be writing this VERY differently if it was a self insert! lolz! Still, in all seriousness the previous chapter meant a lot to me so again you're probably sick of hearing this but I really want to know how that scene made the rest of you feel. Heck if you're shy about other people seeing how you feel in a review that's shown to the public then please PM me! I just want to know if it struck a cord in any of you who are following this story.

 **P.S. IMPORTANT!** There's a part in this that mentions guns so if that makes you uncomfortable then gloss over it, mostly I'm just trying to write about Ash conquering a fear before it has a chance to become a paralyzing one that could ultimately get her or someone she cares about killed.

* * *

Chapter 28: Aftermath

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Ash's POV

I'm not sure when I started crying, but it was probably around when I ran out of actual lyrics of that song to sing when it reached the purely vocal parts and I had finally made it to Shori once his powers subsided enough to let me get closer to him. And when I saw that he was also crying I wrapped my arms around his shaking form, still singing softly to him. In response to my wish to protect Shori and sheild him from the pain in his heart the phoenix behind me moved in closer as well, creating a living canopy of burning wings around the two of us as we softly hummed the rest of our unusual duet together.

The warmth from its wings felt so...welcoming and safe. Now that I managed to summon it by myself I really couldn't imagine why I was ever afraid of it. I could feel its love for me through that warmth and through it's voice as if our own hearts were beating as one. Though I never realized that part of the pulsing I was feeling was coming from the crystal, or what was left of it anyway, even after I started to pull out of my self-induced trance.

Too much had happened all at once for anyone to really notice it shatter the moment I summoned the phoenix, but now that it had, I suddenly felt...exposed again. It was only then that I noticed the broken crystal and I realized I had just sacrificed the only protection I had from that creep's tracking spell to use this power to help Shori without becoming my other self. But the way Shori looked at me with his disbelieving tear-dusted eyes filled with confusion and an unspoken gratitude for pulling him out of his despair only reaffirmed my belief that what I just did was the right thing. Shori was my friend, and in a way I envied that Yuri had such a caring older brother. Honestly, if this didn't prove how much I cared about him, nothing would...

Sensing that it's task was complete, the phoenix reared its head and sang one final resonating note before bursting into flame and returning to me. I was dry now, thanks to its power, but then suddenly I felt so cold that I shivered involuntarily. Shori felt it too since I was still hugging him tightly even after the two of us sagged to the floor and looked at me in alarm.

He barely had any strength left himself yet he was worried for me? I smiled at the thought, overwhelmed by a feeling of accomplishment that almost made up for the mistake I made until I shook my head and thought sadly, _'No, one good deed does not make up for taking someone's life, whatever the reason may be...'_

"Ash! What's wrong?" I heard Shori yelp before I suddenly went limp in his arms, my arms falling from his back like dead weights as I lost consciousness.

Shori of course tried to blink away his own lightheadedness to make sure I was ok, but he just couldn't be sure since I wasn't responding at all and only shivered in random spurts. It looked like finally, after all of the emotional and physical strain caught up to me and I just couldn't handle it anymore. And no amount of shaking on Shori's part could get me to respond to anything or anyone...

That's when with a defeated sigh Shori suddenly noticed that the crystal pendant I was wearing had shattered and small glittering pieces of it now littered the floor. That's when it really struck home that I had not only risked my life to calm him down, but I lost my only defense against being discovered again by that man's spells in the process. Well, so much for all the trouble Ken Murata went through along with Lady Celli to suppress my powers so the enemy couldn't sense me. Not that it mattered because like Yosak said, they already know exactly where I am and who I'm with. Which was now painfully obvious since they were able to make such an elaborate plan to intercept us before we reached Caloria.

Now that I was unconscious like they originally planned to make sure I was before when one of them tried to drug me back in the bedroom, the man from earlier decided to weigh his options carefully before he made his next move. Once he saw that Yosak had made a side trip to free the captive crewmen and Sara's soldiers , with a frown he quickly realized they were now heavily outnumbered. Still, perhaps it was more because of his genuine feelings of guilt or regret that made him show himself before Shori again.

From behind where everyone was standing huddled around Shori and I, he stepped out of the room where he and a few of his men had taken refuge he loudly cleared this throat and everyone whirled around to face him and what was left of the undercover White Crow members who hadn't escaped yet. And judging by the way they tensed and raised theirs swords, expecting another fight. But the White Crow simply raised his hand, shook his head, and peered down at Shori who was cradling my limp form close to his chest, glaring at the man.

"You did that on purpose, didn't you?" Shori growled, repressing the urge to shout if only because he didn't really have the energy for it. "This is a new low, even for you White Crows. I may be a lot of things but I'm not heartless! Even after everything you people have done to me and my little brother I forgave you! I've been wondering what became of the rest of the White Crows all this time and you use how I felt against me, just so I would lose control and force Ash to intervene just like that mercenary did so she'd exhaust herself. I can't believe you'd risk getting us all killed JUST to do that!"

Lowering his hand, the man bowed slightly, "I apologize for deceiving you, Lord Shori. It was not my intention to re-open such old wounds to that extent, yes I expected you to summon a few water spirits at most, not cause a typhoon like your younger brother did that day we spirited you away from The Great Demon Kingdom and Janis pretended to threaten your life to force him to yield. Perhaps I underestimated the true extent of your feelings towards us. If you doubt the truth in my words, then allow me to put your mind at ease about that. I was telling you the truth and I meant what I said. If not for you and the Demon King's mercy and aid, NONE of us would have survived King Ranjeel's slaughter. For that, I will always be eternally grateful," closing his eyes, his expression hardened and while staring down at my sleeping form, he added harshly. "Still, in parting I will tell you this. First of all, I'm afraid that next time we meet I WILL be leaving with the girl, no matter what I must do to accomplish my task. And if not me, then someone else will do so in my stead. I know you care about our well-being Lord Shori, however, there is no other path for us to take apart from this that won't lead us to ruin or perhaps even a darker path since we know no other life then this. I implore you, Lord Shori, you truly have NO idea of the changes this girl will bring to our world, to everyone in it, once you discover the truth. Speaking for myself I daresay it might even crush her. It just becomes a matter of whose lips she hears it from first," glancing over at Berias for some reason with a thoughtful gaze, he stepped into a puddle of water which he and the other White Crows began sinking into, and for no real reason he called, "Part of the answer is already in your grasp. It is part of a story you have already been told. You have but to put the pieces together. So for her sake and your own, I suggest you try to find it another way to discover the truth. Otherwise, if you step foot in that village you might not leave there alive."

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Even though that man escaped with the White Crows that were accompanying him, Sara ordered his men to search the entire ship for any stragglers only to come up empty handed. Even the wounded members had been spirited away, only leaving the few who actually died behind. Sadly there had been casualties on both sides but not nearly as many as we thought.

Or more specifically how many people I thought had died.

It's hard to tell when there are bodies lying all over the place, some unmoving, and others moving so little that at first glance they were assumed dead. Still, I couldn't help but feel responsible for every single life that was lost along with how many were hurt. Surprisingly, I woke up sooner then they expected and insisted on helping with not only the clean up, but also treating the survivor's injuries.

At first they protested, insisting that I needed more rest after using my powers like that, but I refused and told them that I was not about to sit on the sidelines while they cleaned up the mess that was basically all my fault. These men were after me. They made the choice to plan this all out. However, it was because I exist that they had any reason to in the first place so I told them that I had to make the sacrifices everyone had made for my sake mean something by helping those who were lucky enough not to join their comrades who had died to protect us.

Because if I did nothing and more people died, that was going to haunt my dreams and prevent me from getting ANY sleep with that hanging over my head. At least by doing what I could, it would give me peace of mind since there was no point in regretting what was already done since not even my power could bring back the dead...

In the end, they let me do as I pleased but they watched me like a hawk in case I passed out again. At one point I did get a little dizzy but I sat down and took a much needed break without anyone telling me to. I even smiled at Yosak came over to me, who was one of those hawks, and playfully jabbed, "Oh come on, give me a little credit. I took a break before you could tell me to didn't I? Besides, as you recall I never did eat dinner and have been running around all over the place since late last night like a chicken with it's head cut off. I'll be alright. And if I get dizzy again I'll call it quits for now just like you guys want me to ok? I promise."

Thanks to that little comment, my little break ended up longer then I intended when they made sure I ate something substantial instead of just a bread roll or something to tide me over. Once I did I felt much better and continued helping out in whatever way I could, sometimes even just sitting next to a man being treated for a particularly painful wound and hummed a song to them as I held their hand.

And the whole time, this strange sort of familiarity bloomed in my chest like I was used to doing this. Used to seeing people in pain after returning from the battlefield and doing everything in my power to ease their suffering without overstepping myself. After all, if I was needed again I had to be ready...

By the time all of the more seriously injured members of the crew and Sara's soldiers were treated it was almost noon but not quite and we were all pretty beat. Yuri and Shori were done helping treat the injured too, although Shori of course had used up a lot of his power too and they managed to convince him to rest for a bit after all. Meanwhile Conrad, Yosak, and Berias were currently taking care of gathering the bodies so we could bury them at sea. As for Sara, he was busy talking to the Captain about the whole thing to see how many men we ultimately lost and reorganize the remaining crewmen so we could still keep the ship in working order and make it to our destination. As I watched everyone within my direct line of sight work on their appointed tasks, I couldn't help but feel like this whole ordeal was my wake up call.

Sara was right, I just didn't have it in me to hurt people to the extent I needed to to protect myself by using a blade. Dealing with thugs and stalkers was one thing, but using a weapon on someones was entirely different. When no one was looking, or so I thought, I went back to the hallway where my room was and recovered the dagger I dropped that and slipped under the doorway of another room part way. I stared at it for awhile, mostly at the dried blood on it, before I turned and walked away with it as I made my way back to the top deck.

As soon as I got there, I held the dagger exactly as I had when that man attacked me and as expected, my hands started to shake and I started having flashbacks. Even so, I forced myself to continue to hold the dagger and reminded myself of what one of my would-be father's said when he took me out shooting once. The gun itself is not the truly dangerous part, it's the intentions of the shooter that ultimately force it to do what it was designed to do which is cause harm or to kill if necessary. Because yes, guns are dangerous and it's important to respect their power. However, it is actually people who choose to kill people. On their own, a gun is just an object and so was this dagger.

There might come a time when I have to use it again, but, right now I didn't want to or need to. I just wanted to remind myself of that truth, that this was just a sharpened piece of metal and my intentions before weren't to kill that man, it was to protect myself. Honestly, the scariest part wasn't the fact that I stabbed the guy. No, it was the fact that I knew exactly what I was suppose to do to ensure that he died. It was second nature to me, to look into the eyes of my enemy and wait for the light to leave them before I moved onto my next enemy. I shook my head at the thought when I realized this wasn't me, these instincts and memories weren't mine, they were hers. And I didn't have to follow them to the letter. Sure, if they were helpful I didn't mind letting them guide me but in the end, this was MY life. And therefore, these were my choices to make. So as one of my first choices, I dropped one hand from the dagger and with all my might I flung it over the side of the ship and watched a splash mark it's location before it sank to the unknown depths where my car was nestled somewhere in the darkness, probably making for an interesting new home for whatever fish life lived down that deep.

Turning my back to it, I leaned my elbows on the railing smiled to myself as I stared up into the now lucid cloud-free blue sky and made a promise that unknown to me actually made my other self smile warmly at my choice. "I'm not you. I might have your soul and memories buried somewhere deep inside of me but what I choose to do with my life now is up to me. I'm not going to stop living it just because you're there, somewhere. I can't live both our lives, and you already had your chance. Anyway, I'd appreciate it if from now on you just give me a small nudge in the right direction instead of hijacking my body like you did when Shori got his arm cut. If you're not going to tell us anything, let me figure this out on my own. It's the least you can do after getting me mixed up in all of this don't you think...? I don't mind you saving my life, but I'd appreciate it if you'd stop trying to live it for me. I've had it up to here with people trying to force my hand," smiling a bit more darkly, I glared up at the sky harder after placing a hand over my chest where the crystal necklace used to hang that I took off since it was useless now and put it in my luggage. "Speaking of which, I don't know who you are Mr. but this isn't over. We're going to get to the bottom of this one way or another. And if it becomes a choice between staying here with everyone or going back to Earth to give you the run around, then bring it on. You've picked the wrong girl to mess with. Because now it's game on. There's more the one way to beat a creep at his own game."


End file.
